COVID-19 illustration by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
FALMOUTH – According to local health officials, COVID cases are again seeing an uptick, but hospitalizations and deaths are unlikely to mirror that rise.
Falmouth Health Agent Scott McGann said despite statewide reports showing an increase in the weekly positivity rate to close to 4 percent, vaccines have changed the dynamic of COVID to a more endemic phase.
“We’re seeing a little bit of hospitalizations, but you’re not seeing it with deaths because we’re at a different point in the pandemic than we were a couple years ago,” said McGann.
Barnstable County is still well within the U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention’s low-transmission category, meaning there are fewer than 200 cases per 100,000 community members and less than 10 percent of hospital beds filled with COVID-positive patients.
“Hospitalizations are still well below 10 percent,” said McGann.
“Again, we’re getting more cases, but the cases are generally not resulting in the same severity.”
Second booster shots are available for those 50 years of age and older who received their first booster at least five months ago.
Anyone 12 and older with certain medical conditions are also eligible for a second booster at least four months after their first.
While vaccine brands can be mixed and matched between initial doses and boosters, those 12 to 17 may only receive a Pfizer booster at this time.
County officials have no intention of running clinics, as vaccines remain accessible through pharmacies and health care providers across the region through vaxfinder.mass.gov.
About Grady Culhane
