The COVID\u002D19 modelling group’s latest suggests the growth rate of the Omicron BA.2 variant is almost four per cent a day in B.C.
Sally Otto, an infectious disease modeller on the team, which released its latest report Wednesday, said the mask mandate is the one pandemic measure that needs to remain in place a little longer to protect access by vulnerable people to essential services such as grocery stores, drugstores and public transit.
Otto supports the provision of a second booster, or fourth shot, for vulnerable populations, including those age 70 and older, Indigenous people 55 and older, and clinically extremely vulnerable individuals who are six months from their third COVID shot. Otto noted that’s not as steep as the first Omicron wave, but said it’s hard to predict when the second Omicron wave is going to turn around. About 80 per cent of all new cases are driven by the Omicron BA.2 variant, said the group’s report.Article content
Some jurisdictions, including South Africa, have seen a modest BA.2 wave, while others, such as the United Kingdom, are seeing similar levels of hospitalization as in the first Omicron wave, said the report. In Ontario, where the BA.2 variant wave started earlier, there’s been a surge of hospitalizations and cases — wastewater samples suggest the number of new daily cases is now matching peaks in January. The increase is thought to be related to a change in people’s behaviour, including going without masks.