Over the last couple of weeks, the number of confirmed COVID cases in Oregon has risen, though this has been anticipated by state health experts, who are not yet sounding the alarm.
In an interview with Oregon Public Radio, Peter Graven, the lead data scientist at Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU), observed that the increase is a predictable consequence of both the statewide lifting of the public indoor mask mandate and the influx of students returning to in-person classes.
However, like other public health experts, he claims this is nothing to fret over. According to Graven, the culprit behind this recent uptick is the same COVID variant that led to the spike in cases last winter.
“The good news is that it is the same Omicron and we know that it has a much lower risk of hospitalization, certainly than Delta did, particularly if you’ve been vaccinated,” he said.
Graven added that those who have been testing positive for COVID have not been suffering as severe symptoms and have not needed to go to the hospital.
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