Expect another surge as COVID-19 cases rise, BA.5 variant arrives in Erie County
Northwestern Pennsylvanians should expect yet another surge in COVID-19 cases and, possibly, hospitalizations as a new omicron subvariant spreads across the area.
Erie County's weekly number of new COVID-19 cases rose slightly last week, from 240 to 277. However, samples taken last week from the Erie Wastewater Treatment Plant showed a significantly higher amount of virus, said Howard Nadworny, M.D., a Saint Vincent Hospital infectious diseases specialist and Erie County Department of Health adviser.
"The amount of virus in the samples doubled from the previous week," Nadworny said. "I take from this that (new subvariant) BA.5 is here and overlapping with the BA.2.121 that we have been seeing."
More: COVID-19 cases on the rise: What to know about the state of the pandemic
BA.5 is a concern because it has the ability to infect people who are fully vaccinated and boosted against COVID-19, even those who were infected with a previous COVID-19 strain. Those infected with the first omicron subvariant in late 2021/early 2022 or previous variants have little protection against BA.5, while those infected with BA.2.121 in May or June probably have "some protection," Nadworny said.
Fortunately, BA.5 doesn't appear to cause severe symptoms in most people, especially those who are fully vaccinated and boosted, and do not have other, serious health issues.
"Getting both booster doses will reduce your risk of getting BA.5, but it will especially reduce your risk of getting seriously ill," Nadworny said. "It's very important for older people to get their boosters."
More: COVID-19 cases are rising in many states. What experts say makes this summer different.
Even though it's the middle of summer, Nadworny recommended that people wear face masks in public if they want to reduce their chances of getting this latest COVID-19 subvariant. BA.5 is so transmissible that it can spread outdoors among groups of people who are in close proximity.
"Even though BA.5 doesn't appear to cause severe illness in most people, there is still a concern that people who get even a moderately severe case can then develop long COVID," Nadworny said.
COVID-19 hospitalizations remain steady, for now
The expected rise in COVID-19 cases could eventually spark an increase in hospitalizations, but for now the number of COVID patients in Erie hospitals remains steady following a gradual decline.
The county's 14-day moving average of daily COVID hospitalizations dropped from 29.4 to 22.1 between June 6 and July 6, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Health.
More: Erie County sees uptick in COVID-19 cases. Is another wave coming
"We are seeing an average of eight to 10 COVID patients a day and a majority of them have 'incidental' COVID, meaning they were admitted for something else," said Jim Donnelly, R.N., UPMC Hamot's chief quality and nursing officer. "We are still admitting some patients who get seriously ill with COVID, and they continue to have a high risk of mortality. They are exclusively unvaccinated and often have other health issues."
Contact David Bruce at dbruce@timesnews.com. Follow him on Twitter @ETNBruce.
This article originally appeared on Erie Times-News: COVID-19 update: BA.5 variant likely has arrived in Erie County
