Epidemiologist Michael Osterholm recently told NBC that the new COVID-19 strains could create a new wave of cases. “The surge that is likely to occur with this new variant from England is going to happen in the next six to 14 weeks,” he said.
“The hurricane is coming. Because of this surge, we have to call an audible,” he said. “If we get a number of first doses in people, particularly 65-years-of-age and older, we can really do a lot to reduce the number of serious illnesses and deaths in this next big surge, which is coming.”
“We do have to call an audible. I think there’s no doubt about it. The fact is that the surge that is likely to occur with this new variant from England is going to happen in the next six to 14 weeks, and if we see that happen, which my 45 years in the trenches tells we will, we are going to see something like we have not seen yet in this country,” Osterholm said Sunday.
“That hurricane is coming. So I think we have to understand that because of this surge, we do have to call audible,” he said. This means he is advising that the distribution plan delay the second vaccine dose to prioritize first doses for as many seniors 65+ as possible.
“You and I are sitting on this beach where it’s 70 degrees, perfectly blue skies, gentle breeze,” Osterholm said. “But I see that hurricane five, category five or higher, 450 miles offshore. And, you know, telling people to evacuate on that nice blue sky day is going to be hard.”
Researchers from the University of Washington warned over the weekend that the new COVID-19 strains — like those from South Africa, the United Kingdom and Brazil — could create a deadly spike in the U.S. this spring, according to The Boston Herald. The U.K. variant, dubbed B.1.1.7, was first identified in the U.S. in late December but is thought to have been around as early as October. It’s soon expected to become the dominant strain of virus in the U.S.
While the strain has shown to be significantly more infectious and may cause more serious illness, the current vaccines being distributed seem to be effective in combating the variant.