The first case of COVID-19 caused by the Omicron variant has been identified in Rhode Island.
The individual is a Providence County resident in their 20s who had recently returned from traveling in New York, Governor Daniel J. McKee and state health officials said in a statement Saturday. The individual had completed a primary vaccination series, they said, but had no record of a booster shot. Contact tracing on the case is ongoing.
The Rhode Island case was identified through the ongoing genomic surveillance program coordinated by the department’s State Health Laboratories.
Massachusetts reported its first case of COVID-19 caused by the Omicron variant on Dec. 4.
Rhode Island’s findings are “not at all surprising” given the recent identification of the Omicron variant in the region, Dr. Nicole Alexander-Scott, director of the state Department of Health, said in a statement. However, she said, the findings come as people are spending more time indoors which “underscores the need for Rhode Islanders to continue to protect themselves and their families.”
Alexander-Scott added that “vaccination, booster doses, mask wearing, testing, socially distancing, and ventilation are all critical to minimizing the spread of any variant of COVID-19.’’
The governor is expected to announce “actions to address an increase in COVID-19 cases, alleviate pressures on our hospital systems, while at the same time keeping our schools open for in-person learning and preventing economic disruptions to our small businesses,’’ Matt Sheaff, a spokesman for McKee said in a statement released Friday.
McKee has been under increasing pressure to impose an indoor mask mandate, a move that he previously has expressed reluctance to impose. Lifespan, the state’s largest hospital group, and the Rhode Island Medical Society, say that an indoor mask mandate is needed to curb the spread of the coronavirus and prevent short-staffed hospitals from being overwhelmed.
During the last 30 days, the seven-day average number of positive COVID-19 cases in Rhode Island has increased more than 200%, according to data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. As of Dec. 8, Rhode Island reported an average of 1,087 new COVID-19 cases during the previous seven days, compared with 198 new cases as of Nov. 7, the CDC data shows.
McKee is scheduled to meet over the weekend with members of the departments of health, commerce and other areas of government “to finalize executive actions he will undertake,” the statement said.
For more information about where to get vaccinated against COVID-19 visit covid.ri.gov/vaccination.
Health reporter Lynn Arditi can be reached at larditi@thepublicsradio.org. Follow her on Twitter @LynnArditi
