Marinscope
In what is being called the “Thanksgiving Effect,” the Bay Area saw an 80% increase in COVID-19 cases, causing medical experts to recommend the wearing of high-quality masks when indoors.
The Marin County health office reported last week that the county remains a viral soup of flu, RSV, and COVID-19. All three transmission rates are on the rise here.
The weekly health report said: “Taken together, the so-called triple-demic of respiratory viruses is not showing signs of abating locally. Compared to the prior week, local wastewater levels for influenza, RSV and COVID-19 increased by 35%, 21%, and 6% respectively. COVID-19 case rates increased 44% over the past week. Influenza percent positivity—the percent of tests performed on patients with symptoms that are positive for flu — is the highest level ever for the month of December (25%). This signals both high and early flu transmission in Marin.”
This resulted in an upgrade in COVID-19 status for both Marin and Sonoma counties. Marin and Sonoma went from Low (green) to Medium (yellow). This change was based on increased hospitalization rates.
“This supports the recommendation that residents who are at higher risk of becoming seriously ill use a high-quality mask in indoor public settings,” the report said.
Cases in the nine-county Bay Area have jumped from an average of eight daily cases per 100,000 residents in late October to over 13 at the end of November, an 80% increase, the San Jose Mercury News reports.
“We are seeing a Thanksgiving effect,” said Dr. John Swartzberg, clinical professor emeritus of infectious diseases and vaccinology at UC Berkeley.
Dr. Bob Wachter, who chairs the medical department at UC San Francisco, said even though he’s had the updated booster, he wears a mask to the grocery store, isn’t dining at restaurants unless it is outdoors. He also “insists that his friends test before gathering to play poker.”
“I’d really prefer not to get infected if I can avoid it,” he said.
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