Bay Area residents urged to take precautionary measures due to recent rise in COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations

California – The recent rise of COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations across the Bay Area prompted health officials from 11 counties, including Contra Costa, Alameda, San Mateo, San Francisco, Marin, Napa, Monterey, Sonoma, and Santa Cruz, to appeal to the public, advising people to take precautionary measures such as wearing face masks, maintaining social distance, etc.

In a joint statement, health officials from the counties mentioned above said that the area now has one of the highest infection rates in the state.

The current rise in infections is caused by BA.2, which is one of the most contagious subvariants of the already highly contagious omicron variant.

In a statement, Dr. George Han, the Deputy Health Officer for Santa Clara County, made the following comment: “If you’ve chosen not to wear a mask in indoor public places recently, now is a good time to start again.”

The joint statement from the health officials also contained a request to the non-vaccinated residents, who are being asked to take the shot as soon as possible, and to those who are already positive for COVID-19 to seek Paxlovid, a medication that significantly lowers the risk of developing severe complications.

Health officials believe the number of COVID-19 positive cases in the Bay Area is much higher than measured because they suspect that not all people who test positive through rapid at-home-tests report the result to the local health departments.