COVID still around; hospitalizations rise slightly

Although the COVID State of Emergency in West Virginia will be lifted Jan. 1, 2023, the spread of COVID variants and their impact is far from over.

On Wednesday, Gov. Jim Justice read a list of 15 more people who have died from COVID this week, raising the pandemic total to 7,605.

Justice pointed out during his briefing that 97 have died during the last month and 4,900 state residents tested positive.

“We have learned to live with it,” he said, adding that vaccines are the way to do that and more than 4,000 state residents received their first dose of the vaccine last month.

“Keep in mind there are those still battling this disease,” he said. “We should know this thing isn’t going to go away. It’s not going to go away for a long time.”

Dr. Clay Marsh, state COVID-19 Czar, said the state has also seen a “slight increase” in the number of COVID-related hospital admissions, up to 169 on Wednesday after falling to 114 on Nov. 23.

The increase is most likely due to the holiday break, he added, and it also reflects an increase in the number of new variant cases, the BQ.1 and BQ.1.1 variants that are now starting to take over.

The new variants spread rapidly, he said, and have mutated at a rapid rate to better evade immune responses.

Some increases in positive cases around the state has been seen, with 14 yellow counties now after dropping to almost all green recently.

Marsh said the Omicron booster is crucial.

Although the vaccine may not prevent someone from contracting the new variants, it “protects people from death and hospitalization,” he said.

He also cautioned that the among the most vulnerable population, age 65 and older, only 31 percent have received the Omicron booster.

Marsh also said people should not let their guard down as the holiday season is continuing.

Retired Maj. Gen. James Hoyer, director of the Joint interAgency Task Force, said over 90 precent of deaths from COVID in the country are in the 65 and older population group.

He urged people to not only get the booster but also the flu shot, and the flu season has not yet peaked.

Hoyer also said the Task Force that provides a coordinated statewide effort to handle the pandemic was formed just over 1,000 days ago, and he praised all who have been on board and worked hard on the effort.

— Contact Charles Boothe at cboothe@bdtonline.com