To Pamela Cruz. Peninsula 360 Press [P360P]
Efficient and rapid work by healthcare providers and public health case investigators identified five mildly symptomatic cases of COVID-19 involving the Omicron variant among Alameda County residents.
The five patients with the new variant are among 12 local cases of COVID-19 so far linked to a Nov. 27 wedding in Wisconsin that one of the individuals attended upon returning from international travel, the county said in a statement.
The document, issued on Friday, details that a state laboratory used genomic sequencing to identify the five infected with the COVID-19 Omicron variant, which is now being detected throughout the country and around the world.
As of Friday afternoon, genomic sequencing data were not yet available for all 12 cases.
The individuals with the COVID-19 variant are between the ages of 18 and 49. One of them is a resident of the city of Berkeley, which has a separate health jurisdiction, and the remaining 11 are residents of Alameda County.
All 12 individuals were vaccinated, and most had received booster shots. So far, the symptoms of these individuals are reported to be mild, and no one has been hospitalized.
The Alameda County and City of Berkeley public health departments are investigating these cases with support from the California Department of Public Health.
"Close contacts are being notified and provided isolation and quarantine," the county health department said.
He added that public health officials remain vigilant and are monitoring evidence of the transmissibility of this variant, as well as the severity of illness resulting from infection.
“We don’t yet know how Omicron will impact a highly vaccinated region like the Bay Area. But, we remind residents that vaccination still provides the best protection against severe COVID-19 illness that could result in hospitalization and death.”
Residents should continue to use all strategies to prevent the spread of COVID-19, such as:
- Get vaccinated and booster shots, if eligible
- Stay home if you are sick
- Get tested if you are symptomatic or exposed
- Indoor use of face masks
- Hand washing
- Avoid crowded, stuffy, poorly ventilated enclosed places.
- And if you meet or travel, get tested before and after.
At least four other states in the country have reported positive cases to Omicron, including New York, with five positive cases of the variant; one in Minnesota; and others in Hawaii and Colorado.
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