Weekly Rounds with Infection Control Today: As Omicron Moves In, Vaccines and Boosters Pushed

Here are 5 highlights from ICT®’s wide-ranging coverage of the infection prevention and control world. Everything from interviews with known opinion leaders, to the news that infection preventionists and other health care professionals can use on their jobs.

COVID-19 Omicron May Be More Infectious, Deadlier Than Delta

If the infectivity, lethality, and immune avoidance of the Omicron variant is confirmed, it will be of utmost importance that all who can, become vaccinated. In addition, antiviral medications will become of prime importance.

Vaccines That Target Omicron Reportedly in the Works

Health care workers at facilities that treat patients who have Medicare or Medicaid coverage were required to get their first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine by this Sunday. Ten states asked for a temporary injunction and got it.

Biden’s Vaccine Mandate for Health Care Workers Hits Judicial Roadblock

Health care workers at facilities that treat patients who have Medicare or Medicaid coverage were required to get their first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine by this Sunday. Ten states asked for a temporary injunction and got it.

As Omicron Spreads, CDC Says Adults 18 and Older Should Get a Booster

Some epidemiologists reportedly posit that Omicron might be a way out of the COVID-19 pandemic if the variant’s symptoms are mild, as some initial reports indicate.

‘You Dirty Rat’: Experts Posit That Omicron Hatched in Rodents

The number of mutations to the spike protein in Omicron suggests a very different evolutionary trail than had been seen in other iterations of COVID-19, say some experts.