REGIONAL- A significant surge in COVID-19 infections sweeping across the nation this summer has not left Minnesota and the North Country untouched, as data indicates rising hospitalizations in the state for the past two and a half months.
While far below the highest peaks of the pandemic, the continually evolving COVID virus has created conditions the Centers for Disease Control has termed “particularly severe” in terms of hospitalizations and deaths across the country, especially in the southern U.S.
The most reliable form of testing for COVID levels is viral load in wastewater, as only about one-third of hospitals currently report case data after the reporting requirement was dropped in May.
CDC data suggests that viral levels detected in wastewater across the country are currently higher than they were at this time last year, with a “high” or “very high” level of COVID-19 present in nearly every state, including Minnesota.
The closest wastewater testing point to the North Country is the Central Iron Range Sanitary Sewer District treatment plant in Chisholm, where COVID viral loads hit their highest level of the year, 6,904 copies of the virus per liter, on Aug. 21, surpassing the previous high set last February. Across the prior two weeks, the viral load jumped 83 percent, and it’s up almost 500 percent since June 30.
Health experts suggest the summer surge has been driven by a number of different variables, including increased travel, extreme hot weather driving people indoors, the emergence of new COVID variants, and a decline in overall immunity due an increasing number of people reaching six months since their last booster or infection.
The ongoing surge is particularly concerning for vulnerable populations, including individuals over 65, those with preexisting conditions such as heart or lung disease, and people who are immunocompromised. As the virus spreads widely, these groups are at higher risk of severe illness, despite the protection offered by vaccines and antiviral treatments.
New booster
Updated COVID-19 vaccines from Pfizer and Moderna targeting the KP.2 variant were approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Aug. 22 and are now available at pharmacies and health clinics. The new booster is expected to provide protection against the most-prevalent current variants, including KP.2.3, KP.3 and KP.3.1.1, as well as LB.1, although the boosters have not been specifically tested against those. A third option from Novavax, targeting an earlier strain called JN.1, is expected to be approved soon.
The CDC recommends that everyone aged 6 months and older receive the updated vaccine.
However, it’s unlikely that the new boosters will be any better received than past ones. As of this past May, nine months past the rollout of the previous booster update, only 22.5 percent of adults, or one in five, had reported receiving that booster. Research has shown that booster effectiveness wears off significantly in four to six months, although there is still some elevated level of protection from getting seriously ill or dying.
In a podcast last week, Dr. Michael Osterholm, director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy, warned about misinformation that has been circulating regarding the 2023-24 boosters that have been administered this summer. Osterholm said that inaccurate claims have been made about the boosters being recalled or having expired. Those who have been vaccinated prior to the release of the updated booster this week should not be worried about the bogus claims, he said.
Paying for shots
One consideration working against the booster effort is that the CDC’s Bridge Access Program that provided free COVID vaccinations comes to an end on Sunday. The program has ensured access to boosters for those living without medical insurance, and uninsured people will now have to pay out of pocket or find an alternative source to cover the cost. It’s likely that boosters will remain free for those who have health insurance – covered individuals should check with their providers for information specific to their plan.
However, last week the Biden administration announced that free COVID tests will be available again. Households will be able to order four free tests through the Covidtests.gov website once it launches again in late September. The tests will be mailed directly to people’s homes.
A new normal
While health experts continue to debate whether COVID is still a pandemic or is now endemic, it’s clear that Osterholm believes COVID is here to stay.
“What we’re seeing now is, I believe, the COVID of our future,” Osterholm said. “We’re going to see more and more activity like this as we go forward, where it won’t be necessarily one season. It may actually be big increases in cases. But, fortunately, there will be fewer, more severe cases, fewer deaths, fewer hospitalizations. It doesn’t mean they’re done, but there’ll be fewer.”
“COVID is here. It’s not good, but it’s not nearly as bad as it was,” he continued. “And we’re trying to figure out how to live with it.”