FALMOUTH – Though Barnstable County still remains in the CDC’s low-transmission category, local health officials are saying that might not remain the case for much longer as COVID case numbers rise.
Falmouth Health Agent Scott McGann said that while cases will likely continue to climb, it is unlikely that hospitalizations and deaths will follow suit.
“I think you’ll see an uptick in hospitalizations but again it won’t match. It will be more similar to Omicron— the original version—where the hospitalizations will remain on the lower side even though case counts go up,” said McGann.
“I’m fairly hopeful that it won’t result in the calamities that we have seen previously.”
He said vaccines have significantly knocked down the amount of severe cases that occur regionwide, despite COVID’s continued prevalence.
About half of Cape towns have seen their 14-day COVID positivity rate rise above 5 percent, including Chatham, Orleans and Falmouth.
In Boston, health officials have already begun to encourage masks when in indoor public spaces.
Universities across the region have also returned to enforcing face covering policies for the third year in a row.