Fauci: It's too early to say if omicron will lead to endemic phase

Covid-19: when will it stop being a pandemic to be endemic?

1:31

(CNN) --

As the United States approaches the start of a third year of the pandemic, many are wondering when the endless disruptions that Covid-19 has posed will subside.

But Dr. Anthony Fauci cautioned that even though omicron appears to have less serious health implications, it's too early to predict whether we're approaching the endemic stage where a virus becomes more manageable.

"When you talk about omicron being highly transmissible, but apparently not as pathogenic as, say, delta, I hope that's the case," the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases said Monday.

Everyone probably gets infected with covid-19, according to Fauci 0:36

"But that would only be the case if we don't come across another variant that circumvents the immune response to the previous variant," Fauci told the Davos Agenda, a virtual event being held this week by the World Economic Forum.

• Quebec announces that it will fine those who are not vaccinated and, a day later, appointments to receive the first dose skyrocket

A disease that is endemic has a constant presence in a population, but does not affect an alarmingly large number of people, as is often seen in a pandemic.

"We were lucky" that omicron didn't share some of the same characteristics as delta, "but the sheer volume of people getting infected negates that much lower level of pathogenicity," Fauci said.

advertising

"It is an open question whether or not omicron will be the live virus vaccine that everyone is hoping for, because there is a lot of variability with new variants emerging," he said.

Covid-19 cases continue to rise due to the high transmissibility of omicron.

The daily average of recorded infections was just over 680,000 on Monday, according to data from Johns Hopkins University, which is substantially higher than the peaks of last winter's surge.

Health care systems, some of which are facing critical staffing shortages, are treating more patients than ever.

At least 156,676 people in the US were hospitalized on Monday, according to data from the Department of Health and Human Services.

Schools grapple with omicron

As cases and hospitalizations increase, measures to reduce the spread of covid-19, such as vaccination and the use of masks, continue to be necessary.

However, mandates on wearing masks in schools, where problems with educator and staff shortages have arisen, are under fire in a new state.

Citing "individual freedom" and the availability of vaccines for elementary and high school students, Virginia's new governor, Glenn Youngkin, issued an executive order stating that parents will have the ability to decide whether their child should wear a mask at school. class, a departure from its predecessor's public health emergency order in August that masks be worn in schools.

Several districts in Northern Virginia and the Richmond metro area have announced they will reject the latest order set to begin Jan. 24.

"Our layered prevention strategies have proven effective in keeping transmission rates low in our schools," Fairfax County Public Schools Superintendent Scott Brabrand said in a letter to the school community.

"The universal use of face coverings has proven effective in keeping COVID-19 transmission rates low in our schools and ensuring classrooms remain safe and open," an Arlington Public Schools statement said of its decision.

And an email from Henrico County Public Schools to parents and guardians says, "Mask wearing is a vital component of the division's layered prevention measures," while noting that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Disease Prevention recommend masks in schools and that federal law requires masks on school buses.

The latest spike in Covid-19 cases also prompted school districts in some places, from Paterson, New Jersey, to Mobile, Alabama, to switch to virtual learning this week.

• "I'm constantly tired": Omicron variant puts essential workers under a lot of pressure

In Texas, all Houston Independent School District schools and offices will be closed Tuesday due to increased cases in the community, the school district announced on its website.

Classes are expected to resume on Wednesday.

The school district encouraged students and staff to take "this extra day to mitigate potential exposure."

Progress on future vaccines advances

To get even further ahead of variants, new vaccines are being developed.

Moderna should have data available on its omicron-specific Covid-19 vaccine in March, the company's chief executive, Stephane Bancel, said on Monday.

"It should be in the clinic in the next few weeks. And hopefully in the March time frame, we can have data to share with regulators to determine the next step to take," he told a panel conversation in Davos.

A combined Covid-19 and flu vaccine from Moderna could also be available in some countries by the fall of 2023, Bancel said, but warned that date was a "best-case scenario."

Vaccines remain the most effective way to prevent serious complications, which remain a factor in the nation's recovery as Americans continue to die from Covid-19.

The average number of deaths has exceeded 1,600 daily for the past week, according to JHU data.

Booster doses have successfully shown the ability to raise an individual's antibody levels months after the initial inoculations, helping to keep those most at risk out of the hospital.

Early data from Israel suggests that a fourth dose of the Pfizer/BioNTech or Moderna vaccines may cause a surge in antibodies, more than has been seen after a third dose, but still may not be enough to protect against potential infections. intercurrent caused by omicron.

In December, Israel began testing a fourth dose of the coronavirus vaccines for healthy participants ahead of the rollout of the additional booster vaccine to at-risk populations, marking the first such study among healthy people receiving a fourth. dose.

"I think the decision to allow the fourth vaccine to vulnerable populations is probably correct," Dr. Gili-Regev Yochay, director of Sheba Medical Center's Infection Prevention Control Unit, said of the data on Monday.

"It may give a little benefit, but probably not enough to support the decision to give it to the entire population, I would say."

CNN's Jacqueline Howard, John Bonifield, Virginia Langmaid, Dan Merica, Eva McKend, Ryan Nobles, Livvy Doherty, Carma Hassan and Alex Medeiros contributed to this report.

Anthony Fauciomicron