Mask-up, with the right mask, or COVID won't go away | Commentary
Worrying that the new Omicron super strain could become a problem? Look at what is happening right now with Delta!
Since early November, when the U.S. was averaging about 45,000 hospitalizations per day, the numbers have now have shot up to nearly 58,000 per day. During the panemic, 50,000 cases per day have only been exceeded five times. We are about to enter the fourth surge in cases just in time for the holidays.
The new B.1.1.529 SARS CoV-2 virus variant, Omicron, first discovered on Nov. 9 in South Africa, is now in over 40 countries and almost every state. With more than 50 mutations and 30 of those in the spike protein, the likelihood that it will render today's vaccines ineffective is quite high. A study published in the journal Science this month found that Pfizer's vaccine efficacy at preventing infection in immunized individuals, declined from 86% to 43% from February to October. Moderna's vaccine dropped from 89% to 58%, and J&J's vaccine fell from 86% to 13%. You are no longer safe, or if you are one of those who remain unvaccinated, the odds of acquiring this virus are almost assured.
More: First cases of omicron strain of COVID virus reported in Florida
More: As omicron variant marches across America, Florida limits locals' tools to fight it
It has been two years since the pandemic began, claiming 5.2 million lives and sickening 261 million worldwide. In the United States, the world's leader for infections, more than 50 million people have tested positive. The actual number of infections is more than two to three times that. If you think being one of those who have already been infected will protect you, you are wrong again. These variants have proven their ability to reinfect and will not disappear until we make them disappear.
What should we be doing? With vaccine protection waning, getting another "booster" shot is probably a good idea. However the only PROVEN method in preventing infection is wearing an N-95 mask securely covering the nose and mouth (not a KN-95, which being less effective, were allowed before manufacturing of the real masks caught up with the demand).
If the virus cannot get in, it cannot infect you or spread to others. And if the virus cannot be spread through the air person-to-person, it will disappear, forever. We did it with smallpox, TB, and polio, isn't it time we got together, got smart and did the same with COVID-19?
Robert M. Kershner, M.D., M.S., F.A.C.S., of Palm Beach Gardens, is a physician and professor of microbiology and virology.
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Commentary: We're getting thousands of COVID cases daily, so mask-up
