Omicron Not Yet in NYC, but Mayor and Governor Doubling Down on Vaccination Efforts

By Yehudit Garmaise

No confirmed cases of the Omicron variant yet exist in New York City or the US, but we are watching vigilantly, and very likely there will be, said Dave Chokshi, MD, the city’s health commissioner this morning, although COVID’s newest strain has been detected in at least 12 countries worldwide, including Canada.

“We are very, very carefully watching this situation,” said Mayor Bill de Blasio, who said the city will continue to focus on vaccination and also launched a new mask initiative for New Yorkers to wear “in certain key settings.”

“Our Job. No. 1 is vaccination: that is where we are putting all of our energies,” the mayor said. “We will continue to use a variety of tools to help all New Yorkers to get their first shots, second shots, and boosters.”

“We must get vaccinated in a real way,” echoed Mayor-elect Eric Adams, who spoke for the first time on the mayor’s morning press call. “It is time for us to come together around this.”

“This could prove to be a critical movement in our war with COVID-19.”

“We are preparing to take action,” said Mayor de Blasio, who said he is coordinating with Gov. Hochul to prepare the city and state to fight Omicron. “Our entire focus is on vaccination: Based on everything we know, vaccination is crucial to any strategy to facing Omicron.”

Although health experts are not yet clear on the effectiveness of the vaccines to fight Omicron, the vaccines work against every variant we have right now,” the mayor said. 

“We have to double down on vaccination,” said Mayor de Blasio. “Vaccination is the key to fighting the variants.”

“My message has been consistent: everywhere we need vaccine mandates: public sector, private sector, CEO, everywhere. Vaccine mandates work.”

Today, the mayor announced a new vaccine mandate that will affect the city’s 102,000 childcare workers, who must get their first shots by Dec. 20.

“The quicker you get vaccinated, the better off you and your family will be,” said the mayor. “With this vaccine mandate, we are protecting your health and the health of all of the kids in these programs.

“We don’t have yet reliable evidence on Omicron’s speed of spread,” said Dr. Chokshi. “The reports from South Africa are that Omicron potentially spreads rapidly, but causes less severe disease. You may have heard reports of mild illness, but we have to those 'with a grain of salt.'”

Dr. Chokshi said that health experts will take weeks to determine and clarify anything definitive about the effects of Omicron.

Dr. Chokshi did warn, however, that many health experts think that those who have had COVID in the past may be more likely to be reinfected with Omicron: especially those who are unvaccinated.

“We continue to strongly recommend vaccination, which has proven quite effective against the Delta variant,” Dr. Chokshi said.

Photo: Flickr