Covid-19: Reflecting Back on 2022, Still A Problem But A Hopeful Turn

When the calendar flipped to 2022, Covid-19 was a menace as Montgomery County, the state of Maryland, and the rest of the country dealt with an explosion in cases fueled by the Omicron variant.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported the number of deaths from Covid-19 in January alone was about 73,000 people around the country.  That made January the third deadliest month from the disease since the pandemic began in March 2020.  Maryland and Montgomery County were not immune from what was happening.  They experienced a rise in cases, hospitalizations, and deaths that month.

Conditions were so bad in Maryland that Governor Larry Hogan reinstated a state of emergency that took effect on January 4th.  The state of emergency lasted 30 days and Hogan lifted it on February 3rd.

Push For More Testing

While Americans dealt with their new normal, there was a push around the country to get more testing.  President Biden announced two major initiatives last January.  He mandated private insurance companies cover the costs of at-home test kits starting on January 15th.   The Biden administration also ordered one billion at-home rapid tests to give to Americans for free. A half billion tests became available for shipping on Jan. 19th.  The free testing program lasted until September when Congress did not provide additional funding for it. However, on Dec. 15th, the Biden administration announced plans to reinstate the free testing kits to deal with an anticipated rise in cases this winter, but the supply of free test kits would be limited to four per household.

As the winter months of 2022 moved on, the number of Covid-19 cases began to drop around the country and in Maryland.  The state though saw some spikes in mid-February, in mid-May and early June.

New Vaccines Approved

The CDC unveiled a major breakthrough in June.  The agency announced it had approved Pfizer and Moderna’s mRNA vaccines for children six months and older.  Two months later, the Food and Drug Administration approved emergency use authorization for Pfizer and Moderna’s bivalent booster. The booster provides protection against the original strain of Covid-19 and two of the Omicron variants (BA.4 and BA.5). 

Dr. Fauci Announcement

August also brought some unexpected news.  Dr. Anthony Fauci, who had become the face across two administration’s fight against Covid-19 announced he would step down as President Biden’s chief medical advisor and as director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.  Fauci has headed that government agency since 1984 but said he would leave at the end of December.  He said he does not plan to retire, but the 81 year old plans to travel, write, and work on other projects.

Latest Numbers

Jumping ahead to the fall, Montgomery County has maintained a low level of community spread and hospitalizations.  However, since Thanksgiving the county, the state and the country have seen a spike in Covid-19 cases and hospitalizations.  Doctors advise people get their booster shot to help slow the spread of the virus.  The CDC says so far only 14% of Americans have received the bivalent booster.

Overall, the latest statistics show more than 1.3 million Marylanders have contracted Covid-19 since the start of the pandemic as of December 18.  That has resulted in 15,943 deaths.  About 600 people are currently hospitalized with the virus.  Montgomery County has had 234,000 cases of Covid-19, 2,207 deaths and 56 suspected deaths.  Maryland has given out more than 14 million vaccine doses.  Nearly 5 million people are fully vaccinated. 

Looking Ahead To 2023

As we look ahead to 2023, doctors are cautiously optimistic the country has turned a corner in its fight against Covid-19.  Vaccines and therapeutic drugs such as Paxlovid are available.  They can help minimize the effects of the virus.  However, global health officials say people need to remain vigilant especially those who are immunocompromised.  The World Health Organization has not yet declared an end to the pandemic but it believes the end is in sight.

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