SANTA CLARA — While the level of the COVID variants found in Santa Clara County’s wastewater system is soaring, health officials assured local residents Tuesday that mask mandates will not be returning.
Dr. Sara Cody, Director of the Public Health Department, gave an update on state of COVID in the county as the pandemic enters its third winter.
“We remember that the last two winters have been extraordinarily difficult and I unfortunately need to tell you that this winter is shaping up to be no different,” she told reporters.
Cody then pointed to a graph measuring the amount of virus found in four different county wastewater facilities. Palo Alto’s has surpassed last winter’s Omicron winter spike levels. San Jose, meanwhile, is at more than 80 percent of last year and rising fast.
“There’s a ton of virus circulating,” she said.
The wastewater measurement is a more accurate snapshot of the current levels of the virus, Cody said, because so many people are using home tests and not reporting the results to county health officials.
The rising numbers of COVID cases come at a time when influenza and RSV are also infecting local residents. The tripledemic is putting a strain on local hospitals.
“Our healthcare workers are pretty stretched,” Cody said.
When asked how to stay heathy in the “viral soup” in the county, Cody said flu and booster shots will help you navigate the choppy waters.
And while she recommends masks be worn at crowded, indoor gatherings, Cody believes the mask mandate will not be returning.
“I don’t see mandates returning,” she told reporters. “I think that 3 years in (to the pandemic) it’s extraordinarily difficult to mandate.”
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