By Cristopher Pineda, Sept. 17. 2024
Cal Poly Pomona has faced an increase in COVID-19 cases since the start of the new school year due to new variants of the virus detected in August.
The five new subvariants of the Omicron variant make up about 87.6% the collection of positive tests from Aug. 18-31 in the U.S., according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The KP.3.1.1 subvariant itself makes up around 42.2 percent of all positive tests.
Jamie Snyder, associate professor of biological sciences with a research focus in virology, explained, “Getting vaccinated is one of the best things you can do to protect yourself, and the booster that just came out targets the variant that is circulating now.”
According to Snyder, even if you were vaccinated before the new booster, you can still have immunity, but boosters are being provided to stay up to date, like a yearly flu shot.
The new Novavax COVID-19 Vaccine, Adjuvanted, which includes the 2024-2025 formula, was amended by the Food and Drug Administration Aug. 30 for emergency use on specific individuals 12 years of age and older. The vaccine includes a component that corresponds to the Omicron variant JN.1 strain.
The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health shares that out of the estimated 9.8 million people in Los Angeles County, around 14% have stayed up to date with the 2023-2024 dose and only 10% are completely up to date with their vaccines.
Snyder explained that the current surge of COVID-19 we are experiencing now isn’t as bad as before, but COVID-19 is good at adapting. A new prominent variant that circulates, only becomes more prominent and transmissible since people do not have immediate immunity to new strains, it leads to an influx of cases that now require a new vaccine.
“One of the best ways to help protect yourself is to wash your hands frequently.” Snyder said. “We are walking around campus, we’re touching desks, we’re touching computers, we’re touching doorknobs, and so the more you wash your hands the better it’s going to be for you.”
Los Angeles County Department of Public Health has reported a positivity rate of 11.5% since Sept. 1. Positive cases have been slowly rising in Los Angeles County since the beginning of June.
“This isn’t going anywhere, we are going to be dealing with this virus for a long time,” Snyder said. “I definitely don’t think it’s going to be at the level where it was when we were first introduced to it because we have a lot of vaccines and antivirals to deal with this.”
Many students had their classes moved online or even canceled, interrupting their first weeks of classes. Destiny Lorenz, a philosophy student at CPP, noted that her teacher was unprepared for the transition to online classes when her teacher had moved the class online after testing positive for COVID-19 that morning.
“It was weird having my first day of school, I expected it to be in person and it was moved to Zoom,” Lorenz says. “I found out an hour before class had started.”
As of Jan. 1, the California State Assembly Bill 685 (AB 685) ended, which removed the obligation for CPP to inform students and faculty of potential COVID-19 exposure on the Safer Return to Campus website. According to the website , CPP remains dedicated to implementing safety measures for the campus’ well-being.
Associate Director of Student Health and Wellness Kevin Malone informs students that COVID-19 is still a concern of the Student Health and Wellness Center especially while students are coming back to classes.
“We know the first three to four weeks was a heavy zone for us because people are coming in from different places,” Malone states. “So we anticipated a bit of spike, we were prepared for this.”
The Student Health and Wellness Services is providing COVID-19 tests and personal and protective equipment, such as masks and gloves. If students sick, there are physicians on staff that can assess students’ health, which is all funded through the student health fee every student pays.
“I see a lot more self-medication and self-diagnosis, but in a good way,” Malone said. “I think people are learning how to cope with COVID.”
The Safer Return to Campus website contains the most-updated information on COVID-19 issues at CPP and Los Angeles County. COVID-19 tests are available at the Welcome Center in the Student Services Building, the Care Center, the Student Health and Wellness Center and the circulation desk on the second floor of the University Library.
Feature image courtesy of Cristopher Pineda