Health Care

Omicron breakthrough cases becoming more prevalent

Gov. Kathy Hochul is emphasizing booster shots as new science highlights how the coronavirus variant evades vaccines.

Gov. Kathy Hochul is emphasizing booster shots as new science highlights how the coronavirus variant evades vaccines.

Gov. Kathy Hochul is emphasizing booster shots as new science highlights how the coronavirus variant evades vaccines. Mike Groll/Office of Governor Kathy Hochul

Science has shown that vaccines are great at preventing deaths and hospitalizations from COVID-19. A new variant of the coronavirus, however, has highlighted that the vaccines are hardly perfect. Vaccinated people make up a small fraction of serious COVID-19 cases, and data shows how the variant can spread among them whether they show symptoms or not. A new normal of breakthrough infections is upon us. “The winter surge is getting worse and it is going to get even stronger,” Gov. Kathy Hochul told reporters at a Thursday press conference in Albany.

Experts said the omicron variant makes testing now important for vaccinated people, especially those participating in large social gatherings, but state officials did not emphasize that as they confront growing caseloads. Vaccines remain the focus of the Hochul administration while testing – especially among the vaccinated – has become a lower priority for state officials than earlier in the pandemic. “Our main message to people who have been vaccinated now is to get boosted,” Dr. Mary Bassett, the new state health commissioner, said Thursday at the press conference when asked by City & State whether omicron meant the state should place a greater emphasis on testing among the vaccinated. “We do know that people who are vaccinated can become infected. People who have survived COVID and been previously infected can also be reinfected. So stay tuned.”

Ongoing supply shortages present a key impediment to expanding testing for everybody statewide, Bassett told City & State in an interview. She added that such problems have hampered places like the United Kingdom when officials have wanted to increase testing, which in turn undermined their public health responses in the end. “Procurement isn’t straightforward,” she said. “We have to know that we can do what we say.” The logistical issues around increased testing could be an impediment to the state successfully combating the omicron variant.

State data showed there have been more than 226,000 breakthrough cases from all variants. That number will likely increase dramatically as omicron continues to spread and becomes more dominant compared to other variants like delta. Testing makes particular sense before visiting vulnerable people like the elderly for the holidays, according to Bassett. “Personally, I have a mother who’s 93 years old and before I go to see her, I get tested,” she told reporters. “All of us have to start planning around the most vulnerable people in our networks, especially as the holidays come.” New York City – where the COVID-19 test positivity rate has doubled in recent days – appears to be taking such advice to heart, with Mayor Bill de Blasio announcing plans Thursday to increase testing sites, extend testing hours and distribute 500,000 rapid test kits to the homes of people across the five boroughs.

The Hochul administration is requiring businesses statewide to either check vaccination status or require all patrons to wear masks – though some localities are refusing to enforce it. Hochul – who recently called the pandemic “a crisis of the unvaccinated,” which was largely true for previous variants – has said that the state is setting up a portal for New Yorkers to request any of the 1 million at-home tests the state has ordered, but she said these efforts were focused on unvaccinated people.

People who refuse to get the shots are demonstrably at a much greater risk of serious illness or death from COVID-19. State data shows that vaccinated people have about a 90% lower chance of being hospitalized from COVID-19. So it makes epidemiological sense that Hochul would emphasize the more shots, the better.

Early data shows that omicron means vaccinated people have to worry about COVID-19 as well. Booster shots appear to make a big difference, but that does not mean vaccinated people do not have to worry about getting tested.  “All individuals whether vaccinated or unvaccinated should get tested if they have been in social gatherings with large numbers of individuals,” Dr. Wafaa El-Sadr, an epidemiologist and professor at Columbia University, said in an email. “Testing is recommended for all who were in contact with a case of COVID-19.” Yet, based on what Hochul and Bassett said Thursday, state officials are worried about other aspects of the pandemic at the moment, not on getting more vaccinated people tested despite the new dangers of omicron.

X
This website uses cookies to enhance user experience and to analyze performance and traffic on our website. We also share information about your use of our site with our social media, advertising and analytics partners. Learn More / Do Not Sell My Personal Information
Accept Cookies
X
Cookie Preferences Cookie List

Do Not Sell My Personal Information

When you visit our website, we store cookies on your browser to collect information. The information collected might relate to you, your preferences or your device, and is mostly used to make the site work as you expect it to and to provide a more personalized web experience. However, you can choose not to allow certain types of cookies, which may impact your experience of the site and the services we are able to offer. Click on the different category headings to find out more and change our default settings according to your preference. You cannot opt-out of our First Party Strictly Necessary Cookies as they are deployed in order to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting the cookie banner and remembering your settings, to log into your account, to redirect you when you log out, etc.). For more information about the First and Third Party Cookies used please follow this link.

Allow All Cookies

Manage Consent Preferences

Strictly Necessary Cookies - Always Active

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Sale of Personal Data, Targeting & Social Media Cookies

Under the California Consumer Privacy Act, you have the right to opt-out of the sale of your personal information to third parties. These cookies collect information for analytics and to personalize your experience with targeted ads. You may exercise your right to opt out of the sale of personal information by using this toggle switch. If you opt out we will not be able to offer you personalised ads and will not hand over your personal information to any third parties. Additionally, you may contact our legal department for further clarification about your rights as a California consumer by using this Exercise My Rights link

If you have enabled privacy controls on your browser (such as a plugin), we have to take that as a valid request to opt-out. Therefore we would not be able to track your activity through the web. This may affect our ability to personalize ads according to your preferences.

Targeting cookies may be set through our site by our advertising partners. They may be used by those companies to build a profile of your interests and show you relevant adverts on other sites. They do not store directly personal information, but are based on uniquely identifying your browser and internet device. If you do not allow these cookies, you will experience less targeted advertising.

Social media cookies are set by a range of social media services that we have added to the site to enable you to share our content with your friends and networks. They are capable of tracking your browser across other sites and building up a profile of your interests. This may impact the content and messages you see on other websites you visit. If you do not allow these cookies you may not be able to use or see these sharing tools.

If you want to opt out of all of our lead reports and lists, please submit a privacy request at our Do Not Sell page.

Save Settings
Cookie Preferences Cookie List

Cookie List

A cookie is a small piece of data (text file) that a website – when visited by a user – asks your browser to store on your device in order to remember information about you, such as your language preference or login information. Those cookies are set by us and called first-party cookies. We also use third-party cookies – which are cookies from a domain different than the domain of the website you are visiting – for our advertising and marketing efforts. More specifically, we use cookies and other tracking technologies for the following purposes:

Strictly Necessary Cookies

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Functional Cookies

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Performance Cookies

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Sale of Personal Data

We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated “sale” of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.

Social Media Cookies

We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated “sale” of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.

Targeting Cookies

We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated “sale” of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.