COVID-19 cases in Marin County have tripled in the past six weeks due to the Omicron subvariant BA.2, which is now the county’s dominant strain, local health officials said Wednesday.
The highly contagious variant has caused recent outbreaks in schools, long-term care facilities and jails, according to county officials.
COVID cases are rising in much of the Bay Area due to the variant, but Marin County has yet to see a proportional increase in COVID-related hospitalizations or deaths, according to Dr. Matt Willis, health officer. county public.
“We are learning in real time about this new strain and what it does and doesn’t do,” Willis said in a statement. “It’s very good at infecting people, including those who are vaccinated. But it doesn’t send vaccinated people to the hospital.”
Experts estimate the BA.2 subvariant to be at least 25% more infectious than the main Omicron variant that drove the state’s winter COVID surge.
However, residents who completed their initial vaccination series and received a booster reduced their risk of death by 90% and also reduced their overall risk of infection overall, according to county health officials.
As of Wednesday, 92.6% of all eligible county residents ages 5 and older have completed their initial vaccination series.
“It’s becoming more and more likely that most of us have a date with COVID, if we haven’t already,” Willis said. “The key is to be vaccinated and boosted before that happens, so we don’t end up seriously ill.”
Residents are encouraged to use a rapid home COVID-19 test before attending gatherings with people from other households as virus levels remain high locally.
You can find information about COVID in Marin County at https://coronavirus.marinhhs.org.
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