Health Department Commissioner Dave Chokshi issued a warning Monday to reinforce the use of masks indoors, regardless of vaccination status. This measure is due to the growing concerns derived from the contagions of the omicron variant in the world.
At a press conference, Chokshi announced that the scientific community of the city has not detected -for the moment- any case of the new variant in the city.
“We anticipate detecting the omicron variant in New York in the coming days. This is in accordance with the global contagion,” explained the municipal health minister. He added that the city government is currently conducting a genetic study with 15% of the samples obtained in cases of COVID-19 in the city. This implies that the Municipality will soon discover the variant, once it appears in the city.
For his part, Mayor de Blasio mentioned that he is in close communication with Governor Kathy Hochul and the mayor-elect, Eric Adams, in order to take preventive measures for the arrival of the omicron variant in New York.
“We all know that there is still a lot of information to know and that it will take days or maybe weeks before [la variante] I arrived. Meanwhile, we will remain vigilant and will take all actions as the facts become known, “said de Blasio.
He stressed that the recent warning is to redouble mask protocols, as happened in August. The Mayor emphasized that he will not issue an executive mandate yet as he does not want to send the message that wearing the mask is a more important preventive measure than vaccination against COVID-19.
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