Since COVID-19 instances are rising and fatalities and hospitalizations are increasing, this winter is beginning to resemble last year’s. As a Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health preparation fellow, Rachael Piltch-Loeb emphasizes that “we are not in the same position we were last winter.”
More than 205 million Americans have now received a COVID-19 vaccination, and those who do get sick will have easier access to therapies that may lessen the severity of their illness. As a whole, we’re in a better position in terms of our knowledge of the virus.” Piltch-Loeb adds, “And we are becoming better at knowing what we can do to prevent spread and safeguard people.
As long as there is no omicron variation, analysts believe that advancement will continue beyond the year 2022. This year’s pandemic will be different in these five respects, according to the experts.
1. Treating COVID could get easier
Two new COVID-19 medicines will be available in the United States in the new year. First-of-its-kind medication developed by Pfizer on Dec. 22 has been approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for use in persons at high risk of COVID problems. Merck’s oral antiviral medication was approved by authorities shortly after, as well.
Since the outbreak began, there have been just a few therapies that can save the lives of those who are infected with COVID-19. However, their availability has been restricted since they can only be administered intravenously in a hospital or medical institution. As an infectious disease expert at Houston Methodist, Dr. Ashley Drews notes, the new Pfizer and Merck medicines, accessible only with a prescription, move COVID therapy to the outpatient environment. Early trials are showing that the tablets are effective against the rapidly spreading omicron variety, which is “very intriguing,” she adds.
2. At-home testing will play a bigger role in slowing the spread
Fast at-home testing, or quick antigen tests, was very popular under delta’s reign of terror. Self-swabbing before socializing has become more popular with the development of the omicron variety.
Many physicians and testing facilities use routine PCR tests (short for polymerase chain reaction), although the results might take days to get back. You may have been infected as you waited for the results of your test, according to experts.
“What quick antigen tests do is answer the question ‘Are you infectious right now?’” says Joseph Allen, an assistant professor at Harvard T.H. Chan. Upon reflection, that’s the topic we want to get an answer to when we go to see folks, right?
Over-the-counter testing will be more widely available by the year 2022, according to health experts. “On pace” to increase the country’s supply of fast at-home testing, the federal government said. By the middle of January, private insurers will be able to pay their subscribers for the cost of these tests (approximately $25 for a package of two), and health centers and rural clinics will be able to provide them free of charge. A half-billion fast at-home tests will be purchased by the Biden administration this winter, and they will be given out free of charge to everyone who requests them.
Harvard’s Piltch-Loeb stresses the importance of people being “really clear about what the protocol is” as this expanded at-home testing plan is implemented. While the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention advises a 10-day isolation time for those who are symptom-free or showing signs of improvement, those who continue to wear a mask with others for an additional five days may cut that isolation period to five days. If you have any underlying problems that put you at risk for difficulties, you should also see your doctor.
As long as you’ve been vaccinated and boosted, you can be certain that you aren’t ill and won’t spread the disease to others, even those who are at high risk, according to Allen.
3. With omicron, the focus on boosters will be big
As far as we know, a booster injection is the best way to protect yourself against the extremely infectious omicron version, according to specialists in the field.
What’s the cause behind this? Omicron possesses several alterations that allow it to evade the protections of a typical vaccination dosage. The standard series “is not as effective as you may want it’s not as good as it was against the original virus,” Francis Collins, former head of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), said at a recent AARP tele-town hall. However, a booster dosage increases the antibody response and “gives you far stronger protection against omicron up by around 80%. Collins went on to say, “And that’s an optimistic discovery.”
Only 33% of Americans have had a booster injection to date, even though everyone 16 and older is entitled to one six months of taking the two-dose Moderna or Pfizer vaccinations or two months after receiving the Johnson & Johnson shot. There is now no need for a variant-specific vaccination, but that might change in the future. To combat omicron, Moderna and Pfizer are working on new formulations that might be available as early as the spring of this year. If you’ve been putting it off or weren’t sure whether you required it, Collins advised students, “Now is the time to make arrangements for that booster.” To shield yourself against the dangers of Omicron, the booster is your best bet.
