The state health department reported 43-hundred new COVID cases yesterday and hospitalizations rose to 514. Chief of Infectious Diseases at LSU Health New Orleans, Doctor Julio Figueroa, says many of the patients are experiencing cold and flu-like symptoms.
“So it seems as if we have a lot more individuals out there with a milder disease, now it doesn’t mean it’s milder for everyone and that’s one of the things I want to emphasize,” said Figueroa.
Figueroa says a vast majority of these cases are the Omicron variant and they are seeing fewer cases of shortness of breath or loss of taste or smell. He says based on data from the state health department, 80-percent of those hospitalized with COVID are unvaccinated.
“We are still seeing individuals coming into the hospital needing admission, some of them being put on the ventilator,” said Figueroa.
According to the Louisiana Health Department, 35 COVID patients are on a ventilator. Health professionals continue to urge the unvaccinated to get vaccinated and those vaccinated to get their booster shot. Figueroa says the COVID vaccine is here to stay.
“I think there is a reasonable chance, a pretty good chance actually that we are going to be doing vaccinations on a fairly regular basis for this virus-like we do with influenza,” said Figueroa.
According to the Louisiana Health Department, 35 COVID patients are on a ventilator. Health professionals continue to urge the unvaccinated to get vaccinated and those vaccinated to get their booster shot. Figueroa says the COVID vaccine is here to stay.
“I think there is a reasonable chance, a pretty good chance actually that we are going to be doing vaccinations on a fairly regular basis for this virus as we do for influenza,” said Figueroa.
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