COVID-19’s brutal punch appears to be lessening as the virus morphs into new variants, Ventura County’s public health officer said Tuesday.
Dr. Robert Levin told the county Board of Supervisors he sees growing evidence locally that the illness is getting progressively milder as different forms of the coronavirus emerge in the region.
He also expressed hope a months-long rise may be flattening out, possibly inching downhill.
“The COVID virus is doing what we hoped it would do all along which is to say that with each wave it’s becoming less and less dangerous,” Levin said. “The trend is going in the right direction for COVID and for us to be leaving this nightmare we’ve been living in.”
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The county is still ranked in the highest of three COVID-19 risk tiers by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Levin acknowledged the possibility of “unknown curveballs” but said he was reassured when he saw only a gradual rise in COVID-19 hospitalizations this summer as infection case rates leaped.
As of Tuesday, 81 COVID-19 patients had been admitted to hospitals countywide, falling from a peak of 89 two weeks earlier. Only five people needed treatment in intensive care units where numbers have stayed low, another trend Levin cited.
Transmission levels remain high but don’t appear to be climbing. State data Tuesday showed a daily average of about 37 cases a day per 100,000 county residents, compared with 40.3 cases a week earlier.
The highly contagious omicron subvariant, BA.5, likely accounts for at least 60% of the county’s infections, Levin said. Data shows a “Centaurus” subvariant that has risen in India could be more vulnerable to antibodies from vaccines or infections.
The CDC’s high-risk rating carries a recommendation for universal indoor masking. Los Angeles County officials are contemplating a mandate that could begin as soon as Friday.
Levin said Ventura County does not need a mandate yet but urged people to mask up and get vaccinations and booster shots.
State officials announced Monday the new Novovax vaccine has been approved for use in California but probably won’t be available for a few weeks. Levin said the new vaccine uses more traditional technology in fighting the virus than current COVID-19 vaccines and provides another choice.
Tom Kisken covers health care and other news for the Ventura County Star. Reach him at tom.kisken@vcstar.com or 805-437-0255.
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