As the pandemic drags on, COVID infections and death toll climb in Stanislaus County
Stanislaus County is posting numbers showing an elevated risk of contracting COVID-19.
As omicron subvariants spread in the community, the county’s test positivity rate is 22.25%, according to a public health update Wednesday.
Stanislaus and more than 40 other counties in California are at high risk based on case numbers over a seven-day period, according the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention COVID data tracker.
The county’s online dashboard reported seven new deaths, bringing the total near the 1,800 mark. Since 2020, 1,798 county residents have died of COVID-19.
The omicron subvariants are causing less severe illness than previous strains, but older adults and people with chronic illness are considered vulnerable to serious complications.
Hospitalizations are relatively low this week. The county reported 91 hospitalizations, including a dozen COVID-infected patients in intensive care units.
County public health officials have dealt with 56 outbreaks, including 18 in residential care facilities, 12 in retail outlets and six in office locations. A smaller number of outbreaks were in food services, health care facilities, distribution warehouses and agricultural operations.
The five newly recorded outbreaks were in residential care, retail and office space, according to a county surveillance report.
The county recommends taking precautions against COVID-19 by wearing face masks and getting vaccinations and booster shots.
Another variant emerges
According to the Sacramento Bee, another new and highly contagious offshoot of omicron has been recently detected in California, this one known as BA.2.75. The subvariant is being monitored by the World Health Organization and has been associated with a recent rapid increase in infections in India.
WHO officials say BA.2.75, which descended from the BA.2 “stealth omicron” variant, appears to be more contagious than BA.5 and has additional mutations outside of its spike proteins.
Experts say it is too early to tell whether BA.2.75 will outcompete BA.4 and BA.5 to become dominant in the U.S. It is also unclear whether there is any difference in severity between BA.2.75 and previously dominant strains of omicron.
BA.5 continues to make up a majority of cases across the U.S. and the West Coast, according to the CDC. The variant made up an estimated 65% of nationwide cases earlier this month. Its sister subvariant, BA.4, made up 16% of cases.
This story was originally published July 21, 2022 at 10:17 AM.
