Mask mandates have been reinstated in fitness systems in several U. S. states. Cases and hospitalizations from respiratory illnesses, in addition to Covid, flu and RSV, continue across the country.
Illinois: After the Illinois Department of Public Health mandated masks in health care facilities and pleaded with those facilities to “step up” their efforts in December, several hospital systems such as Cook County Health, which includes Chicago, and Endeavor Health began requiring masks. and the University Medical Center Chicago-Rush. La Rush-based company announced Tuesday that it would require all visitors, patients and staff to wear masks in certain campus spaces, such as hospital waiting rooms.
Massachusetts: Massachusetts’ Berkshire Health System announced it would begin requiring masks at its facilities starting Wednesday due to “significant levels” of respiratory illnesses; Only about 17% of the state’s 65,956 emergency room visits were similar to respiratory ailments between December 17, 2023 and December 23, 2023.
New York City: New York City has reinstated mask mandates at its 11 public hospitals, 30 fitness centers and five long-term care facilities, New York City Health Commissioner Ashwin Vasan told news station WABC TV on Wednesday.
California: Los Angeles County, requiring masks in fitness centers when the county reaches the midpoint for Covid hospitalizations (defined by the Centers for Disease Control as between 10 and 19. 9 new hospital admissions in compared to 100,000 people over seven years). days) – reinstated the mandate in recent months when it got to that point.
A surge in the “triple epidemic” — a simultaneous accumulation of Covid, flu and RSV cases — has driven a surge in hospitalizations. According to CDC data, 29,095 Covid-related hospitalizations were reported in the U. S. UU. la week ending diciembre. de 23, 2023. This is a 16. 7% increase from last week. There were 10,923 cases of RSV and a 6. 1% increase in flu cases during the same period.
The new Covid variant JN. 1 has led to an increase in Covid cases across the country as it accounted for 44. 2% of all cases in the week of December 23, 2023. The variant has been classified as a “variant of interest,” meaning it is spreading in a way that may pose “an emerging threat to global public health,” through the World Health Organization in December 2023. JN. 1 is a descendant of the highly mutated Pirola virus (BA. 2. 86) that some experts feared would not be protected unlike monovalent Covid boosters, which target in particular XBB variants. However, vaccine brands have made sure that their vaccines offer some protection. Because of the speed with which it has spread, the WHO has said that JN. 1 accounts for the majority of all BA,2. 86 subvariants circulating globally, evidence suggests that it poses a low threat to public health. The CDC also noted the strong spread of JN. 1, stating that it was “the fastest-growing variant in the United States. “
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