Louisiana confirms Omicron variant of virus found in state

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Coronavirus in Louisiana: State reports 2,408 new cases, 4 new deaths on June 6

by: Kevin Dudley, Jr.
Posted: Jun 6, 2022 / 03:00 PM CDT
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BATON ROUGE, La. (KTVE/KARD)— The Louisiana Department of Health reported 2,408 new cases and 4 new deaths on Monday, June 6, 2022, bringing the total number of cases to 1,267,633 and the total number of deaths to 17,345.

As stated on the LDH website, the new case increase may not match the difference between today’s total cases and the previous update because of the daily removal of newly identified duplicates and out-of-state cases.

Hospitalizations increased by 5 and the number of patients on ventilators decreased by 2 as of Monday; coming to a total of 219 hospitalized patients with 6 on ventilators.

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https://wgno.com/news/health/coronavirus/coronavirus-in-louisiana-state-reports-2408-new-cases-4-new-deaths-on-june-6/

[sharon sanders]

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Louisiana Department of Health
@LADeptHealth
·1h

Excerpt:

The Louisiana Department of Health reports 4,461 new #COVID cases that have been reported to the state since 6/16.

Of newly reported COVID cases, 884 are reinfections (defined as a positive viral COVID-19 test in an individual with a previous positive test at least 90 days prior).

We report 350 hospitalizations.

The largest shares of these newly reported cases are among ages 18-29 (18%).

Of newly reported cases, 18% come from Region 2 (Capital Area) and 17% come from Region 1 (Greater New Orleans Area).

https://twitter.com/LADeptHealth/status/1538929521906397184

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LOUISIANA NEWS

Coronavirus in Louisiana: State reports 2,065 new cases, 5 new deaths on June 23

by: Kevin Dudley, Jr.
Posted: Jun 23, 2022 / 12:54 PM CDT
Updated: Jun 23, 2022 / 12:54 PM CDT

BATON ROUGE, La. (KTVE/KARD)— The Louisiana Department of Health reported 2,065 new cases and 5 new deaths on Thursday, June 23, 2022, bringing the total number of cases to 1,294,720 and the total number of deaths to 17,388.
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Hospitalizations increased by 3 and the number of patients on ventilators remained the same as of Thursday; coming to a total of 373 hospitalized patients with 13 on ventilators.
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https://www.myarklamiss.com/louisiana-news/coronavirus-in-louisiana-state-reports-2065-new-cases-5-new-deaths-on-june-23/

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Health experts fear we could see another COVID spike
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Author: Eleanor Tabone
Published: 9:28 PM CDT July 1, 2022
Updated: 10:33 PM CDT July 1, 2022

NEW ORLEANS, Louisiana — Essence festival annually brings more than 500,000 people to New Orleans over the 4th of July holiday weekend. While many enjoy the music and culture, COVID-19 is still lurking, and experts say many could be at risk.
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"We're probably going to see a case rise," Roy said. "We're already kinda primed for a spike... Previously in the pandemic, when we've had an increase in case numbers before a large weekend holiday, we've seen a spike."
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Tulane University School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine epidemiologist Susan Hassig says the risk of COVID-19 is still very real. "The problem is the virus isn't done with us," Dr. Hassig noted.

Dr. Hassig advises festival-goers to mask up, "all of the indoor venues are going to be very full, very busy. I think it's really important for people to wear masks indoors."

Right now, 13% of cases are coming back positive. The advice from experts, if you're immunocompromised, think about whether you want to be in a big crowd.
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https://www.wwltv.com/article/news/health/coronavirus/health-experts-fear-we-could-see-another-covid-spike/289-858b84d9-413f-46ed-93da-29273729807f

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Coronavirus in Louisiana: State reports 4,532 new cases, 3 new deaths on July 5

by: Kevin Dudley, Jr.
Posted: Jul 5, 2022 / 12:35 PM CDT
Updated: Jul 5, 2022 / 12:35 PM CDT

BATON ROUGE, La. (KTVE/KARD)— The Louisiana Department of Health reported 4,532 new cases and 3 new deaths on Monday, July 5, 2022, bringing the total number of cases to 1,315,361 and the total number of deaths to 17,421.
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Hospitalizations increased by 32 and the number of patients on ventilators increased by 8 as of Monday; coming to a total of 481 hospitalized patients with 26 on ventilators.
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https://www.myarklamiss.com/louisiana-news/coronavirus-in-louisiana-state-reports-4532-new-cases-3-new-deaths-on-july-5/

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Health officials urge caution, masking as COVID-19 surges in Louisiana
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Author: Paul Murphy / Eyewitness News
Published: 6:18 PM CDT July 15, 2022
Updated: 6:38 PM CDT July 15, 2022
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“I’m getting more calls, seeing more patients, hearing about more patients than ever before,” Kline said. “This is nothing to play around with. It’s making people sick. It’s keeping people out of work. It’s putting some people in the hospital.”

The number of new cases, hospitalizations and deaths have all ticked up across the state and in New Orleans in recent weeks.

“There are a lot of people who feel really cruddy, right now said New Orleans Health Director Dr. Jennifer Avegno. “This strain of COVID-19 is not mild for many, many people.”

The BA.5 variant is now the predominant strain here and across the country.

Dr. Avegno says community transmission of the virus is high again.

“It’s certainly the most transmissible that we’ve seen. Every variant seems to have gotten more contagious which is really shocking given how contagious the original variant was," Avegno said.

While Avegno is urging people to wear face coverings in crowded indoor settings, she says the city is far from requiring them.

“I haven’t heard any serious discussion of imposing a mandate,” Avegno said. “However, we’ve been advocating for masks for the last two months and we’re going to continue to do that. I’ve got mine right here.”
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The rate of positive COVID-19 tests in the state now stands at more than 27%.
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https://www.wwltv.com/article/news/h...9-895a3fb8359b

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A Q&A with Louisiana's top doctor on the latest COVID-19 surge
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Author: Paul Murphy / Eyewitness News
Published: 5:35 PM CDT July 21, 2022
Updated: 5:38 PM CDT July 21, 2022

NEW ORLEANS —
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Paul Murphy spoke with Louisiana Chief Medical Officer Dr. Joe Kanter about the current trajectory of the virus.

Murphy: How long have we been in this current Covid surge?

Kanter: We’ve been in a surge for quite some time. This has become the longest duration or is on track to be the longest duration surge we’ve had in the pandemic. We started having cases increase at the end of April and they’re still going up. We haven’t yet peaked.
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Murphy: What percent of the tests now reported to the state are positive for Covid?

Kanter: That number is at above 28 percent right now which is about as high as it’s ever been in this pandemic.

Murphy: How do the symptoms in this latest variant (BA.5) compare to previous mutations of the virus?

Kanter: The good news is the infections that we’re seeing right now are usually mild. We’re not seeing the degree of severe illness, at least in the numbers we saw in earlier parts of this pandemic.

Murphy: How does that translate in terms of hospitalizations?

Kanter: Today, we have a little bit over 700 hospitalized patients with Covid in the state. At this point in time in other surges of that we had, we would have had 2,000 or 3,000 hospitalized Covid patients.

In our Delta surge, which was last Fall, at the peak of that, about 20 percent of patients in the hospital with Covid were sick enough to be on ventilators.

In our initial Omicron surge, which was January, February of this year, that number was 10 percent.

Right now, this surge, it hasn’t broached 5 percent.
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https://www.wwltv.com/article/news/h...0-e7e431252a8d

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Elementary school shuts down Friday due to 'several' COVID cases

August 12, 2022 5:11 AM in NewsSource: WBRZBy: Sarah Lawrence

BATON ROUGE - An East Baton Rouge elementary school was shut down Friday, less than a week after its first day of classes, out of "an abundance of caution" due to several COVID cases on campus.

Wedgewood Elementary was closed Friday and will continue with online learning for the day, according to a statement released early Friday morning by the school system.

The impacted classrooms will be deep-cleaned, the school system said, and learning will continue in person on Monday.

The elementary school had its first day of classes this past Monday, August 8.
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https://www.wbrz.com/news/elementary...l-covid-cases/

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Coronavirus in Louisiana: State reports 3,139 new cases, 10 new deaths on August 15

by: Kevin Dudley, Jr.
Posted: Aug 15, 2022 / 04:42 PM CDT
Updated: Aug 15, 2022 / 04:43 PM CDT

BATON ROUGE, La. (KTVE/KARD)— The Louisiana Department of Health reported 3,139 new cases and 10 new deaths on Monday, August 15, 2022, bringing the total number of cases to 1,403,404 and the total number of deaths to 17,708.
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Hospitalizations decreased by 40 and the number of patients on ventilators increased by 4 as of Monday; coming to a total of 582 hospitalized patients with 25 on ventilators.
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https://www.myarklamiss.com/louisiana-news/coronavirus-in-louisiana-state-reports-3139-new-cases-10-new-deaths-on-august-15/

[sharon sanders]

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