Here's How NYC Will Fight Omicron COVID Variant

NEW YORK CITY — Omicron is in New York City — and the fight against the new COVID-19 variant has just begun.

"We are not defenseless."

Gov. Kathy Hochul has repeated those four words during the short span since researchers detected omicron in South Africa, then in the United States and, finally, in the city.

Mayor Bill de Blasio has taken up the message as well. He has told New Yorkers that the city has many weapons to fight the coronavirus, unlike when the virus was first detected and spread in 2020.

And one thing above all is the best defense, he said.

"As the governor said, we have a massive vaccination apparatus and that is by far our best capacity to protect everyone against this variant or any other form of COVID," he said Thursday.

What's Known

Many things about the omicron variant remain unknown.

The variant's detection in South Africa barely two weeks ago prompted immediate concern because it had mutations associated with high transmissibility.

Researchers have since found it has spread twice as fast as the delta variant in South Africa, the New York Times reported. The delta variant itself is highly contagious and now accounts for nearly all cases in the city.

Health experts still don't know how effective vaccines are against omicron, or whether it causes more or less severe cases.

Dave Chokshi, the city's health commissioner, cautioned New Yorkers against relying on anecdotes about omicron and wait for research, which could take weeks.

"The plural of anecdote is not data and it will take more time for us to have a rigorous understanding of the key questions that I've laid out about omicron, which are transmissibility, severity of disease, and how it affects immunity," he said Wednesday.

The first omicron case linked to the city was a Minnesota man who attended an anime convention that ran from Nov. 18 to 22.

Chokshi said it's likely the omicron variant has been in the city since late November.

There have been four cases officially confirmed in New York City, as of Friday afternoon, but Chokshi said the true number is likely higher.

"Remember that sequencing, which is the specialized genetic testing that is done to identify different types of variants, this often takes several days for the machines to actually process that test," he said Thursday during a news conference with de Blasio and Hochul.

All cases in the city so far have been mild, officials said.

Defenses

"It's coming."

Hochul said those words about omicron last week as she announced New York will be under a state of emergency — the first official step to fight against the variant.

The executive order took effect Friday and it allows state health officials to cancel non-urgent scheduled surgeries if medical centers' capacity run below less than 10 percent of beds available.

But the order — while it raises the specter of surgery cancelations and crowded hospitals that haven't been seen since the pandemic's height — still falls short of the sweeping measures imposed by former Gov. Andrew Cuomo.

Most of that is lawmakers stripping emergency powers from New York's governor, but it also represents a change of approach by Hochul herself.

Hochul has made a point of presenting a united front with de Blasio, who had a fraught relationship with Cuomo that often saw the city and state on different paths during the pandemic's early days.

Together, they have stressed the same steps New Yorkers can take to ward against omicron:

• Masking, particularly indoors
• Testing, particularly around travel or gatherings
• Staying home if you don’t feel well, even for mild symptoms
• Handwashing
• And, above all else, vaccination, including boosters

De Blasio has also imposed new strict coronavirus vaccine mandates for 102,000 child care workers and 56,000 employees at religious and private schools.

Chokshi also released new guidance on masks that strongly encourages, but doesn't require, wearing face coverings in indoor public spaces.

What's On And Off The Table

Some officials feel de Blasio and Hochul aren't going far enough fast enough.

Mark Levine, a city Council member and incoming Manhattan borough president, has vocally lamented the lack of an indoor mask mandate.

"This needs to be fixed by yesterday," he tweeted.

NYC’s winter Delta surge is well underway. Omicron is almost certain to be detected in the city soon and likely already here.

Yet *still* we have no mask mandate for indoor public places.

This needs to be fixed by yesterday.
— Mark D. Levine (@MarkLevineNYC) December 2, 2021

Other politicians — including state Attorney General Letitia James — have called for a mask mandate to fight omicron.

But de Blasio has so far been resistant to one for New York City. He said he's worried it'd send the wrong message about vaccination.

"We believe vaccination is the central strategy, and we've got to keep all the focus on vaccination," he said. "I never want people confused, to think that a mask takes the place of vaccination. It does not."

De Blasio did leave the potential for a future mask mandate on the table. He also said he's considering a proof of vaccination requirement for New Yorkers in the 5-11 age group.

And he also signaled the indoor vaccine rule could become more strict, especially after the Minnesota man's omicron case.

The man attended a convention at Javits Center after receiving only one of two doses of vaccine — which is all that's required under the city's current rule, as WNYC's Brian Lehrer pointed out on Friday.

"I know that was to encourage people onto the vaccination track, but the question came up, is that enough now? Do you have any thoughts on toughening that requirement?" Lehrer asked de Blasio.

"Well, that's a good question," de Blasio said. "I think you're exactly right, it was created the way it was created to maximize a vaccination because we know overwhelmingly people get the first shot, go on to get that second shot.

"So, it did serve that purpose very, very well, in some ways I think it continues to, but I think it's a fair question that we're going to analyze now. With all of our approaches to COVID, we're going to update them, because we're dealing with some new challenges at this moment."

But some strict measures appear off the table, at least for Hochul.

She said omicron is cause for concern, but not panic because New York now has the vaccine. The state will not return to the days of March 2020 so long the vaccine and boosters work, she said.

"I'm not prepared to shut down schools or the economy at this time, no," she said Thursday.