Flu season is right around the corner—but according to new data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), we need to be just as vigilant about reducing COVID-19 exposure. The CDC just reported a 10 percent increase in test positivity rates, and COVID-related emergency room visits are also up 15.2 percent from the week prior.
Between increased travel plans and more time spent indoors due to extreme heat waves, this creates the perfect breeding ground for COVID-19 infections. Keep reading to learn where levels are currently surging and expected to grow.
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Stratus rates are up 22 percent from July, per the WHO.
Now might be a good time to get your updated COVID vaccine. CDC health officials are reporting a spike in positive test results and emergency room visits after two new COVID strains began circulating earlier this summer.
Both omicron subvariants, Nimbus (B. 1.8.1) accounted for nearly 50 percent of COVID cases in June, while XFG or “Stratus” picked up speed in July. Stratus is a mix of two earlier strains: LF.7 and LP.8.1.2. It’s considered the more serious of the two because of how rapidly it’s spreading across the country.
In a recent report, the World Health Organization (WHO) found Stratus to be “the most prevalent variant.” As of Aug. 3, it was linked to 60 percent of all COVID sequences—that’s a 38 percent increase from the month prior.
As Best Life previously explained, “Stratus has nine additional spike protein mutations compared to Nimbus. The WHO said some of these spike mutations have been shown to ‘enhance the evasion’ of antibodies. This essentially means that any antibodies you do have won’t be used as a defense mechanism against Stratus. In other words, your antibodies are useless in this case.”
COVID levels are surging in these 11 states:
The CDC’s National Wastewater Surveillance System (NWSS) can detect asymptomatic infections and viruses spreading within a community earlier than a clinical testing site or formal doctor diagnosis. Using that data, they’ve created an interactive map that shows “current wastewater viral activity level of SARS-CoV-2.”
For the week ending on Aug. 9, the U.S. region with the highest COVID-19 activity levels was the West. Viral activity levels were considered “very high” in:
- Nevada
- Utah
- Alaska
- Hawaii
- Texas
Moreover, six states had “high” levels:
- California
- Louisiana
- Alabama
- Florida
- South Carolina
- Connecticut.
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However, a different report shows COVID-19 infections are “growing” in 36 states.
An Aug. 19 epidemic trend summary report from the CDC shows that COVID-19 infections are “growing ” or “likely growing” in 36 states. What’s even more concerning is that there is no evidence of rates “declining” or “likely declining” across the country.
Probability shows that COVID infections are “growing” in the following states:
- Washington
- Oregan
- Idaho
- California
- Nevada
- Arizona
- New Mexico
- Colorado
- Texas
- Nebraska
- Kansas
- Arkansas
- Louisanna
- Mississippi
- Kentucky
- Tennessee
- Alabama
- Florida
- Georgia
- South Carolina
- North Carolina
- West Virginia
- Virgina
- Pennsylvania
Their data also shows that COVID rates will “likely grow” in these areas:
- North Dakota
- South Dakota
- Oklahoma
- Minnesota
- Wisconsin
- Maine
- New York
- Massachusetts
- Rhode Island
- Connecticut
- Maryland
- Delaware
- Washington D.C.
RELATED: Scientists Find Shocking Link Between COVID and Alzheimer’s.
How to protect yourself from COVID:
Despite surging COVID levels, people shouldn’t “panic,” according to senior clinical epidemiologist Ziyad Al-Aly, MD. However, it’s important to “be aware that numbers are now higher than they were a couple months ago,” he told The New York Times.
The COVID vaccine remains your strongest defense against Stratus. “Currently approved COVID-19 vaccines are expected to remain effective to this variant against symptomatic and severe disease,” per the WHO’s report.
However, access to the COVID vaccine might be harder to come by than the influenza vaccine due to changing health mandates imposed by our country’s current political climate.
As Best Life previously reported: “Under the Trump administration, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has said access to COVID booster shots in the fall is likely to be restricted to adults aged 65 and older and those with underlying health conditions such as asthma, diabetes, or pregnancy.”
As always, if you start to experience COVID symptoms or have been exposed to someone who tested positive, pick up an at-home test and rest. Reach out to your doctor if symptoms linger or worsen.
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