Omicron has become the dominant strain of COVID-19 throughout King County, according to Seattle’s Harborview Medical Center’s medical director for infection prevention and control, Dr. John Lynch.<\/p>\n
“We’re going to see it replace the delta strain in Eastern Washington and north and south Washington here very soon,” said Lynch in a Dec. 23 UW Medicine news release.<\/p>\n
Despite omicron’s rapid spread, healthy people who are fully vaccinated and have received their booster should mostly expect cold-like symptoms if they contract the variant, he said. If you test positive, regardless of test type or your vaccination status, reconsider attending any holiday gatherings, Lynch maintained.<\/p>\n
“I know how hard this is for everyone,” Lynch said. “But if that happened to me, I would stay home if my antigen test was positive. Even if I had no symptoms, I would assume that that test is correct, given how much COVID there is out there.”<\/p>\n
As for setting final holiday plans if you’re healthy, it will be smart to keep your celebrations intimate, according to Lynch.<\/p>\n
“I’m sticking with the same tried-and-true stuff,” he said. “I’m sticking with my pod. No big gatherings. Everyone I’m working with and hanging out with is vaccinated.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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