Omicron tally likely over 100 cases
(CNS): Public Health officials have confirmed a total of 44 cases of Omicron in the Cayman Islands and are continuing to investigate another 59 suspected cases, after another 25 test results on Thursday appeared to be the more contagious variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus.
Interim Chief Medical Officer Dr Autilia Newton reported 71 new cases of COVID-19, eleven of which were in travellers, from just 459 PCR tests that were carried out yesterday, increasing the positivity rate to over 15% as the spread of Omicron fuels another surge of cases.
As of 12:01am Christmas Eve, there were 3,605 active cases of COVID-19 in the Cayman Islands, including five on the Sister Islands, and six patients in the hospital. The total number of cases recorded since the start of the pandemic is now 8,457.
There were 3,555 people isolating as a result of community transmission of the virus but Public Health has still not supplied the full number of people in quarantine, including positive travellers and their contacts.
So far, 58,729 people (83% of the population) have had at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, while 57,077 (80%) have had two doses and 16,589 (23%) have had a booster.
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For Isolation Support call 946-3530 or 1-800-534-3530 or email isolationsupport@gov.ky
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Category: Health, Medical Health
This story is just breaking.
From NBC Chicago:
21 mins ago
“CDC Says Don’t Board Cruise Ships, Even If You Are Vaccinated, Citing COVID Concerns
The Center for Disease Control and Prevention is advising people to avoid traveling via cruise ships, regardless of vaccination status, due to the high risk of COVID infection onboard ships.”
Interesting CDC release today on Covid outbreaks on cruise ships aka petri dishes
“The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has said it is investigating or observing 89 cruise ships with Covid outbreaks onboard.
In an update on Tuesday, the public health body said it had begun investigating an additional 38 ships, and 48 others were “under observation”.
Those under investigation include ships from Carnival, Disney, Royal Caribbean and Norwegian Cruise Line.
Three more ships are being monitored by the CDC due to reports of Covid infections, but case numbers are below the agency’s threshold to begin an investigation.”
As of noon 30 Dec a newly breaking story is headlining on the Web:
“CDC Says Don’t Board Cruise Ships, Even If You Are Vaccinated, Citing COVID Concerns”
@CNS – i’d be very interested in your review of this article.
XXX
CNS: I think you spend too much time on idiotic sites spouting garbage.
I hope the Minister of Education has mandated all kids taking a LFT prior to school reopening so we do not have a school outbreak similar to after October break. If necessary they should start sending to schools now for collection prior to the start of the term
Why should Govt send them to schools? The parents should go purchase them and test at home. Nothing in life is free but 80% of people that live here think everything should be. Hurtful part is most not Caymanian and can’t go home and demand anything but do it here.
For those who have swallowed the Koolaid that Omicron is a mild cold for everyone – Guardian
“There were 1,374 Covid-19 hospital admissions in England on 26 December, NHS England said.
This is up 48% week-on-week and is the highest number since 11 February 2021.”
this has reached the point of lunacy.
DO you know where the phrase about drinking the Kool-aid comes from?
That just means people in hospital who have tested positive for covid. It bears no relation to what they were admitted for. 2/3rds of covid-positive patients are actually being treated for something else.
I see you left out the bit about the severity of the symptoms, hospital duration and the need for supplemental oxygen.
Omicron is basically a cold if you have had the jab. It’s more serious for the unvaccinated, but that’s their own stupid decision.
The Koch Bros appreciate perpetuating the big lie, and Delta is still prevalent globally
https://www.dailyposter.com/how-the-koch-network-hijacked-the-war-on-covid/
I know this may be shocking to you but most people don’t know or care about the Koch brothers. Also shocking we can read the news, studies, divergent views and come to a critically thought out viewpoint. I know critical thought/wrong think is discouraged these days but it’s still legal for now.
This comment won’t age well….
Sorry Art unless you are on the forefront and know something the world does not that is still not proven as yet.
We still probably have a week or more to go to be sure. In fact, last things I heard was Omicron was on par with Delta but again until the data is collected and analyzed its still anyone’s guess.
Talk has been that the vaccines (2 + Booster) are having an affect on it that is making the virus “seem” weaker.
Wrong. The data shows that omicron is less virulent than delta. Main symptoms are runny nose and scratchy throat.
https://www.nbcchicago.com/news/local/sore-throat-runny-nose-the-common-omicron-symptoms-to-know-about/2717331/
Thank you Dr Dufus
That exactly why your country is in such a mess ! Too many just like you not doing what you need to do to help stop to it spreading too caught up in your selfish little utopia !
No 627am those who refuse to quarantine who have travelled here from elsewhere been tested and told to isolated along with their children and will not comply with Covid 19 rules have spread this throughout the community which has had deadly consequences. Those same spreaders have little or no regard for this place or others as a matter fact . Yet we have some reflecting in the local media about the jailing of a Young Caymanian and his very young US girlfriend who were both test and found to be Negative and their trials tribulations for breaching Covid 19 rules. But yet not one of their citizens is ever caught or even mentioned and prosecuted for violating Covid 19 regulations and to top it off blaming everything and everybody else under Sun for the spread of Delta and Omicron . Which is spreading like a wildfire in their country ! Omicron did not travel straight to Cayman from South Africa it camel from London why can our PACT leaders not say or accept that as a fact and because of very lax rules for those arriving here it has spread and why can’t they take real measures to stop it from continuing to spread. How many times have they been advised that vaccines alone cannot stop this or shall we wait until another deadly strain of this virus manifest itself and kill more Caymanians yet again.
Boring
The first Omicron here came from the states. Then Mexico & Canada. Stop blaming the U.K. for everything. Their numbers always look bad because they do more testing, strain identification & reporting than America (north/south/central).
How do you know it came from London? Many more Americans than Brits go to Cayman.
What proof have you got that it arrived from London??? Are they the only flights arriving in Cayman?
Omicron is the talk of the town, but how soon we forget that Delta is still the predominant strain, it’s still as deadly to some as it ever was, and positive cases are likely to rapidly escalate after all of the holiday gatherings, packed stores and restaurants and bars, and the coming New Year’s parties. So many unmasked people enjoying the holidays together with little to no concern for the pandemic.
Omicron is good – we want it to overtake delta as the finally strain here which it will just like everywhere else in the world. Yes it spreads like wildfire but it less severe disease and the vaccinated (boosted) are not dying in hospital which is way any government procedures are intended to prevent.
I too, love being a parrot for the Koch Bros and right wing conspiracy theorists
Ummh, yea, ok dumb dumb, one of the Koch Bros, David Koch, has been 6 feet underground for over 2 years now.
The only person peddling any conspiracy theories at this time is you. There are no Koch Bros. As for what the original poster noted, yes we do want a weakened strain of the virus to infect as many people as possible. Btw, I am fully vaccinated, 2 shots Moderna, plus Moderna booster…
Head in the sand much? The investigative report details how their companies and Hillsdale created the big lie that Covid was no big deal.
And once again, in case you failed Reading 101, David Koch has been dead for over 2 years (August 2019). Unless he’s been able to orchestrate some grand lie from beyond the grave, you may want to leave him out of this one.
The Koch Brother corporation is more than a deceased brother. Their grasp on global policy persists. Why give cover to a corporation?
Ah, so now it’s the Koch Brother corporation, not the Koch Bros themselves. And it’s their grasp on global policy that’s the issue? Funny, and you discovered this all on your own from behind your computer? Amazing! Looking back at your original post “I too, love being a parrot for the Koch Bros and right wing conspiracy theorists”, it seems that the only one being a parrot is you.
I stopped at “Omicron is good “
I actually know where they are going with it because I feel that if what it is weaker but more catching it could be a good thing because we could be left with someone maybe a tad stronger than the flu BUT….what I don’t want is to jump the gun.
The data at this time can be misleading and to speak in absolutes is really dangerous. We simply do not know as yet.
Also, who is to say a new mutation could not emerge that is far more deadlier and even more easily caught after the fact.
All in all the comment is shortsighted and potentially dangerous.
Another silly unfounded comment!@@@
Let me be CLEAR!!!
WE DO NOT KNOW IF OMICRON IS WEAKER THAN DELTA!!!
It is simply too early to say. We have Delta which attacked when vaccines were in their infancy of being deployed to Omicron which has come in at the backend of vaccine deployment. It’s hard to compare the two.
Here is what we do know about Omicron over Delta.
Omicron comes in two versions.
The first has a easy means of detection from other Covid variant. The 2nd has a new mutation (which is troubling) that hides itself from standard detection.
The hiding is a new and concerning twist.
Omicron UNLIKE Delta requires not only the 2 shots but also the booster to be effective against the virus. Some current vaccines are deemed ineffective against Omicron.
As of now there is simply not enough data to know if Omicron is more virulent or not than Delta. The fact that Omicron is coming when many have vaccines and boosters could cloud the power of Omicron which could allow us to let our guards down and if Omicron mutates again it could COMPLETELY bypass our vaccines and we could have a reset on our hands to deal with.
Is this probable? We don’t know. Is it possible? Very much so. The fact that this I believe is the first time it tried to stealth is interesting and slightly concerning. The fact that it now takes two shots plus the booster to find effect should also concern us all.
I say that to say. Be careful what you wish for, especially when you are unsure of what you are actually saying.
We are not in the clear as yet. Covid-19 is not done with humankind. We are building mousetraps and the mouse is countering.
What we need to do is what we have been doing (at least many of us),
1. Get vaccinated
2. Get Boosted
3. Mask up (as much as possible)
4. Wash hands frequently
5. Sanitize often
6. Stay out of mass crowds
Don’t do things for you. Do it for your family. Do it for your friends. Do it for your neighbor who may have vulnerable members of their family. Be your brother’s keeper.
Thanks Wayne.
Policiations brought it to the Brac, shame on them, was not necessary to come at this time, could have had the meeting by Zoom. Yet they came, no masks and shaking hands. Leaders should lead by example.
It is good to be aware of numbers. but if the report contains numbers admitted and numbers dead of these 100 omicron and numbers in vaccinated and unvaccinated will offer either peace of mind or promote vaccination and adherence to distancing ,ventilation,sanizing and masking.
Best wishs. Merry Christmas.
One number matters, total deaths from covid (not with it) among the fully vaccinated with a BMI under 35. That number stands at zero. The world cannot grind to a halt for those who have refused to take simple steps to help themselves.
Cool. Let’s abandon all precautions and get back to ballin and dancin
Another internet Dr now introducing BMI. Did you forget diabetes, immune disorders and dozens of other conditions? Or perhaps you are one of of those superior race people that a German once tried to create.
Think he wa including type 2 diabetes in his BMI comparison.
Don’t count on it promoting vaccination. In Bermuda they did release the numbers on their first 100 local cases and it was 81 percent vaccinated (including 30 percent boosted) compared to 70 percent vax in total pop. So vaccinated picking up Omicron at much higher rates than unvaccinated. Like in every other country in the world.
But if most of the Territory is vaccinated eg…80% the break though cases will appear higher vs the unvaccinated minor population.
Thats common sense!
The operant term in this case is “break through cases (sic)”. Think about that. It is the number of breakthrough cases that makes the data very concerning; there should only be a very few.
Actually taking the comment at face value, no link, the comment says 70% vaccination rate.
This article published Dec 17th says 90% of imported recent cases since Nov 1st are fully vaccinated and 95% of local cases are fully vaccinated. If that’s the case it appears at least in this set of data that vaccines have a negative efficacy. You would expect to see zero efficacy at 70% cases in the vaccinated, but it’s actually worse than zero effectiveness.
https://www.royalgazette.com/health/news/article/20211216/omicron-variant-cases-of-the-coronavirus-have-doubled-since-health-officials-announced-16-cases-at-t/
Innocent,ignorant,and political conclusion.
0.04% of the population have Covid
45% of the population are drunk
3,605 divided by 71,000 equals 0.04%?
Are you part of the 40% of the population that is drunk?
😂😂😂😂
Public Health officials have confirmed a total of 44 cases of Omicron in the Cayman Islands.
Population god knows
Equals = Drama
Hmnnnnnn…@ 1:18am
To have such amazing math skills and given the time of your post, you may just be part of that 45 percent!
😉😉😉🎉
A conservative estimate!
11 people in all are dead with 9 being recent.
Whats your point?
You think because its only 0.04% have Covid it makes the deaths any less real?
Yeah 45% of population is drunk what does that have to do with the cost if tea in China?
And by the way…
0.04% of 71k population is 28.4 people. The 24th of December showed 60 cases which on that day alone was 0.085% of the population and currently we have 3,605 cases or 5.08%.
When you start throwing number please research your data better.
3,605 active cases, so you must think Cayman’s population is 9 million, or more likely you are one of the 3.6 million Cayman residents that are drunk
Maths is not a strongpoint for you old buddy 😂
I am guessing numbers is not your strong suit.
0.04% of 71,000 = 28 people. We have had days of double this much less a TOTAL number.
We have 3,605 people with Covid or 5.08% currently.
I have no idea why how many drunk people came into this. What does this have to do with the price of tea in China?
There has been 1 death from Omicron in the US and 14 in the UK. We should all be vaccinated and conscious of our actions, but having some perspective is also important.
Correct. Delta is still killing people globally
Why is our Government putting in pre vaccine, early 2020 regulations for Omicron? This makes zero sense.
We have therapeutics. We have vaccines. Okay the jab won’t prevent the taker from contracting Omicron, but it certainly looks like this is a weak virus, similar to the common cold. Why destroy businesses, and lock down so many people? Why destroy tourism, and bankrupt families? It just seems that there is no logic at all to any of this.
Um, because Delta didn’t go away just because Omicron arrived?
7:01pm Exactly!!!!! Not to mention Omicron is VERY mild! These new regulations are stupid as hell and don’t come close to being in alignment with risk level.
WWG1WGA! JFK Jr lives! Pizzagate!
We actually have no idea at this point the strenght of the virus. The appearance could simply be because many are vaccinated but for the unvaccinated it could be ever as bad aa Delta or worse. We simply have not had enough time to test all angles as yet.
We need to do whatever we need to do to save lives period and point blank like it or not. A business is no where near worth even a single life and its sickening people who try to make them seem similar in value.
@7:01
Please do detail what “therapeutics” HSA is using to treat Covid patients.
@7:01 is probably referring to the “royal we” – Pfizer and Merck are manufacturing approved pills for treatment, and there is monoclonal therapy. Not sure HSA is administering those yet – CNS, could you investigate and enlighten us?
To those who understand, to those who have been following, you are free. This game is no longer stacked against you.
You can be certain that if there are 44 confirmed cases and 59 suspected cases there are actually many more out there.
Everyone needs to wash/sanitize hands, maintain distancing, wear masks, avoid going on unnecessary outings, etc. Those who haven’t received their third (booster) vaccination should do so ASAP.
Yep! Omicron is milder than most colds and completely asymptomatic for many. People need to stop living in fear.
Now, do Delta, Dr. Q
Maybe it was the Policiations that brought the 5 cases of virus to the Brac, shame.
6 in hospital. 50 % Reduction on 7 days.
This is the most important stat which is barely being reported for some reason.
Putting it as reduction of 50 percent although true sends wrong message.it is better to state so many discharged or died and no new admissions in a given period gives a perspective on omicron behaviour.
Omigod!.
Six is the only number of relevance. Far lower than in Delta times.
there are still Delta, the virus takes 2-4 weeks to become serious after initial positive testing.
Omicron has been here a week, so we won’t see hospitalisations from it for another couple of weeks.
Hopefully they will be few, as it appears to cause only mild symptoms in double vaxed individuals, butit still causes very serious illness for unvaxinated people.
UK has been giving over a million boosters everyday, and have over 50% of the UK population with 2 shots and a booster.
Fortunately do not forget that the UK is in winter, when the virus spreads a lot easier than in the warm Cayman winter.
And?
Thank you CNS for your tenacity, patience, willing to humour and above all else your ability to shrug your shoulders and keep going through the absurdity.
All the very best to all involved in your little media house where the big stories come from and the masses queue anxiously to peruse and see if their comments made it, thankfully not all of mine do.
Enjoy the holidays,
/ anonymous 🎄
Fully agree
Two Policiations Came to the Brac and met with people, not wearing masks and shaking hands and gave it to many people. What Christnas present that was .
What’s a policiation?
Policiation: an overweight politician with excessive flatulence and/or funny hand movements.
Saddest part is that’s about the only “productive” thing those buffoons will do while in office.
Please try to spell “politicians” correctly next time!