April 10 – Public health officials in Hawaii are on the lookout for a new COVID-19 variant in California, urging residents to be vaccinated as soon as possible to avoid serious illness or hospitalization.
Three mutant strains are already circulating on the islands, and one of them – the B.1.429 variant that originated in California – now accounts for 59% of the COVID-19 samples that have undergone genomic sequencing in the State Laboratories Division of the Department of Health, to data released Friday.
According to Dr. Edward Desmond, administrator of the Division of State Laboratories, is the B.1.1.7 strain in the United Kingdom in Hawaii less, and the B.1.351 strain found for the first time in South Africa. .
But on the horizon looming on the east side of the islands is a “mysterious” new variant recently spotted in California, Desmond said in the Department of Health’s “The Weekly Dose” video posted on Facebook on Friday. The new variant, first found in Mumbai, India, contains mutations of both the California and South African variants, which are known to spread more easily and respond less to antibodies from vaccinations or previous infections.
Desmond said the threat to the double mutant strain is not yet known.
“This strain is brand new, it has not been studied,” he said. ‘I think the ominous news is that shortly after it was reported in India, it was also reported in California, and I think we’ve seen what’s happening in California come here pretty quickly, like the California variant B.1.429 came here has. . So this is something we will be watching. ‘
The prevalence of COVID-19 variants varies from country to country, accounting for approximately 59% of Oahu cases. On Maui, 82% of cases involve the dominant California variant, a likely explanation for the high infection rates on the island in recent weeks, according to Desmond.
Maui has led the daily average of new cases per capita since December 24, with the latest DOH data showing 13.7 cases per 100,000 inhabitants on Wednesday. This compares with 5.7 cases per 100,000 for Oahu and the state as a whole.
As of Friday, Maui reported an average of seven days of 23 new cases per day.
The increase in COVID-19 infections coincides with the large increase in arrivals in recent months. According to the Hawaii Tourism Authority, Kahului Airport saw 6, 424 arrivals, including 5, 244 visitors and 242 returning residents.
Due to concerns about travelers introducing different tribes into the country, Maui received earlier this week the approval of Governor David Ige to require Pacific passengers to undergo a rapid test for COVID-19, even if they do. ‘ a negative pre-trip test followed under the state’s Safe Travels program.
Although variants are resistant to vaccines, health officials say it can be vaccinated against COVID-19, and that it can reduce transmission and reduce symptoms if infected.
“The good news is that although the antibodies are less effective, people who have been vaccinated or previously infected are still not going to get seriously ill,” Desmond said. ‘So you do not have to worry that vaccination will not protect you because of these variants.
“Get vaccinated anyway. You can get a mild case, but the vaccine prevents serious diseases and you will not go to hospital.”
Another reason to get the shots: Ige’s latest emergency proclamation, issued Friday, proposes a release of the rules for testing Safe Travels and self-guarantee for travelers who have been fully vaccinated. The new release takes effect as soon as the director of the Hawaii Emergency Management Agency is introduced, with details to be announced later.
The DOH reported Friday that 906, 777 doses of COVID-19 vaccine have been administered so far in Hawaii, with 31% of the state’s population receiving at least one shot.
But just as the DOH announced Thursday that the vaccination on Oahu will expand to residents 50 years and older from Monday, the state learned that its weekly allocation of coronavirus vaccine will be significantly reduced next week due to production issues with Johnson & Johnson’s single dose vaccine.
DOH spokesman Brooks Baehr said Friday that Hawaii received 90,080 doses this week, including 21,300 doses of Johnson & Johnson vaccine. Next week’s award will drop to 76,060 doses, with only 2,600 doses from Johnson & Johnson.
The supply of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine nationwide will be extremely limited until federal regulators clean up production at a manufacturing plant in Baltimore with a history of quality control problems, the White House’s pandemic response coordinator said Friday.
Baehr said officials hope the vaccine outage will be temporary, but it provides another reason to “sign up now,” and before April 19, when suitability on Oahu expands to residents 16 years and older. He said to go to hawaiicovid19.com to find vaccination opportunities at local pharmacies.
People 16 and older are already eligible for COVID-19 vaccinations in the provinces of Hawaii, Maui and Kauai.
Health officials also reported 87 new coronavirus infections across the country on Friday, bringing the total of the state to 30,571 cases since the start of the pandemic. There were no new deaths associated with the coronavirus as the total death toll remained at 470.
The new cases include 67 on Oahu, 11 on Maui, four on Hawaii Island and five Hawaii residents diagnosed outside the state. As a result of updated information, state health officials have removed one Oahu case from the charges.
The released statistics reflect the new infection cases reported to the department on Wednesday.