COVID updates from Dr. Hall - things continue to look good

Data update for Dunn County - things continue to look very good. Some type of surge is likely on its way. Continued very low case numbers and low hospitalizations in our region, which is excellent. We continue to meet both the old and the new criteria for universal indoor masking to not be recommended. (But some folks, for good reasons, may well still be wearing masks - universal means everyone all the time, and we don't need that, but in some cases it's very appropriate for folks to wear masks.) BA.2 continues to spread, as expected. We're starting to see case increases in NY. Nothing here yet, although wastewater counts are going up in more regions of the state now (it's a small increase, and you have to look at log graphs to see it at all), which may presage another increase in case counts. We're not seeing that here yet.To my mind, there are two big questions. One is when and how big will the BA.2 surge be. It could be barely a blip. It could be as enormous as it was in some European countries. (My guess is that it will be smaller in places that had really large surges from BA.1 due to the high natural immunity.) The second big question is whether we'll have the similar hospitalizations from it that the UK and other places have had (they had just as many as in their first Omicron surge, which is to say a lot). There are some things that might change how it plays out here - one is that we still recommend isolation for infected people. Another is that we now have the second booster shot option. So, if you are age 50+, especially if you have practically ANY medical conditions (including being overweight) or are 65+, please get a second booster shot. It really helps. Another surge is on its way in the next weeks to months - it may be tiny, but it might be significant, so please give yourself and your community that extra protection.