Rising Bay Area COVID-19 cases: Is it time to mask up again?
SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) -- San Francisco health officials are urging people to consider masking up in crowded, indoor spaces to help slow the summer surge of COVID-19.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, California is now one of eight states where COVID-19 wastewater viral activity levels are very high.
Dr. Peter Chin-Hong, an infectious disease specialist at the University of California San Francisco, says there are a few reasons for this rise in COVID cases, including more summer travel, less people getting vaccinated and the recent heat wave.
"I think California and the Bay Area, as an example, was ripe to seeing a lot of transmissions during the recent period of time," Dr. Chin-Hong said. "The heat waves made a lot of people go indoors. Also the wildfires. So it's almost like our version of winter when everybody's escaping the heat, or wildfires, congregated inside, a lot of noses and mouths together."
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SF Public Health posted a recommendation on X, formerly Twitter, saying:
"... With COVID-19 circulating, please consider wearing a well-fitted mask in crowded indoor spaces."
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Dr. Peter Chin-Hong weighs in on the recommendation:
"I think that the rationale is that it's just so much COVID going around right now, that is, with a very transmissible strain that, it's going to be very easy to get it, and if you want to lower that risk, carrying a mask around in my pocket like I do, and bringing it out when I feel a little bit at risk is probably not a bad idea," Dr. Chin-Hong said.
"We've seen the highest levels of COVID for a long time in the Bay area, probably close to 2022 summer levels and higher than 2023 summer levels, so a lot of people getting COVID. If we were talking about this in 2020, we'll be talking about ICU beds. In 2022, we'll be talking about hospital beds. This year, there's still hospitalizations that are ticking up but most of the cases are in the outpatient setting. They're in the community."
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Dr. Chin-Hong said even if some people mask up in indoor, crowded spaces, it will decrease some COVID transmissions and raise awareness; adding that symptoms include the usual sore throat, congestion, runny nose, and fever but symptoms they're seeing more of now are stomach symptoms such as nausea and vomiting.
Dr. Chin-Hong is recommending those over 65 get the vaccine now if they haven't and get the new one in October. By then, the new shots are expected to come out.
