Experts warn of an increase in cases of COVID-19 in winter times and call on the population to prevent infections because hospitalization rates for the disease caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus have increased in recent weeks .
And it is that despite the predictions of the authorities of not having a rebound in cases, after Thanksgiving the cases of COVID-19 increased, so the state of California is preparing to combat the disease by putting treatment available to the population against the disease.
"This is the first time that we have available treatments," said Rita Nguyen, deputy director of California State Health and director of Population Health for the California Department of Public Health, at a press conference organized by Ethnic Media Services and the California Department of Public Health.
“Unlike a couple of years ago, we have more tools to fight COVID,” said Wynnelena Canio, Sonoma County Senior Advocacy Services Board of Directors, noting the need to use all of those tools to reduce disease damage.
For his part, Nguyen pointed out that something can still be done against the winter peak of COVID-19, for which he pointed out the need to prevent the disease through recommended health measures such as the use of face masks, the application of vaccines and reinforcements, in addition to fighting it with the treatments that are available.
"Even though people don't want to pay attention, we're doing a great job of telling them that when they're positive for COVID-19 they have to isolate and get treatment," he said.
Likewise, he specified that COVID-19 and the omicron variants are not the only disease that is being fought, since there was also an increase in cases of the respiratory syncytial virus?RSV? and influenza.
“We are now in a triple threat of influenza, COVID-19 and RSV,” said Oliver Brooks, LA Care Health Plan Medical Director.
COVID-19 Treatments Available
The COVID-19 treatments that are currently available help prevent the disease from getting worse, so the number of hospitalizations for illness caused by SARS-CoV-2 decreases.
"Treatment lowers the risk of developing COVID-19 in the long term," Nguyen said, noting that antiviral treatments prevent the virus from replicating in the body.
It should be noted that these treatments are free, accessible and are recommended for people over 12 years of age, in addition to the fact that they can be administered at home or intravenously.
And it is that the oral treatment Paxlovid - which is the most frequently prescribed - has managed to reduce up to 48,000 hospitalizations and 10,000 deaths, as indicated by Nguyen.
Rural areas have little access to health
Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, thousands of people have lost their jobs and faced economic problems, in addition to a reduction in health personnel, which is why communities in rural areas have been among the most affected populations. .
Jasmeet Bains, a family doctor, pointed out that rural areas suffer from a lack of access to health and denounced that they are not only affected by COVID-19 but that vulnerable areas suffer from other respiratory diseases due to pollution.
Likewise, Turner-Lloveras, from the Association of Latino Medical Students at the University of Chicago, pointed out the need to bring information to communities that do not have internet access because sometimes they do not find out about treatments, vaccines and health recommendations. around COVID-19.
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