Columbus mayor says he has no plans to implement COVID restrictions as cases spike
Columbus’ mayor has no plans to implement COVID-19 restrictions , like a mask mandate, as cases spike amid the spread of the omicron variant.
Muscogee County is seeing the highest number of cases in the pandemic with 2,266 COVID cases reported in the past two weeks at a rate of 1,183 cases per 100,000 people as of Jan. 5, according to the Georgia Department of Public Health.
Around 39.2% of coronavirus tests in the past two weeks have been positive.
No other restrictions are currently being considered because of the availability of the COVID-19 vaccine, Mayor Skip Henderson told the Ledger-Enquirer. In addition to vaccine availability, he said people have access to personal protective equipment they can use to protect themselves.
“If anybody is in an environment where they don’t feel comfortable, they can wear a sturdier mask like an N95,” he said.
In March 2020, Henderson issued a declaration of emergency, setting local parameters for social distancing and business operations. Five months later, he issued an emergency order requiring face masks in public spaces and businesses that chose to consent.
The only restriction still in place requires those entering Muscogee County government buildings to wear a face covering.
Gov. Brian Kemp signed an executive order last August that allows private businesses in Georgia to refuse to comply with any local COVID-19 mandates. The order limits local governments’ ability to enforce policies, such as a mask mandate.
In recent months, Henderson has maintained that the best way for people to fight the virus is with vaccines, rather than mandates. Henderson encourages residents to speak with their doctor about whether they should get the vaccine, but acknowledges he doesn’t expect to see a huge increase of people deciding to get vaccinated now.
People who are not fully vaccinated, have a condition or taking medications that weaken their immune system or are in an area of substantial or high transmission should wear masks indoors, according to current guidelines from the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention. People should also wear masks in crowded outside settings if they’re in areas with a high number of cases.
The CDC also encourages those who live in an area of substantial or high transmission to mask. Muscogee County is one of 152 counties in Georgia with high transmission, meaning new cases have increased by at least 100% and positive tests by at least 10%.
What else can officials do?
Local governments can help mitigate spread by conducting a messaging campaign targeted at misinformation regarding the virus and vaccines, said Dr. Jayne Morgan, the executive director of the COVID-19 Taskforce for Piedmont Healthcare.
Unvaccinated people make up the majority of COVID patients in hospital, and as the virus mutates through continued transmission, a carefully-targeted educational push could turn the tide, she said.
“We need to begin to interject ourselves into places where unvaccinated people are having conversations and getting information,” she said.
Regardless of vaccination status, Morgan said it’s important for everyone to follow public health measures, including wearing a medical-grade mask and social distancing.
In Muscogee County, 46% of residents have received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine and 41% are fully vaccinated, according to DPH.
Why is getting vaccinated important?
As of Jan. 3, there were 74 COVID hospitalizations in Columbus, Henderson said. Local hospital officials have reported that COVID hospitalizations have been increasing in the city, in line with state trends.
Henderson said he communicates regularly with health experts, emergency management, the school district and Fort Benning. The whole group about once every two weeks, he said, and he has daily conversations with the health department and area hospitals.
The message he’s hearing from experts is although the omicron variant is easy to contract, the symptoms are not typically as severe as other strains of COVID-19.
“If you look at the folks that have ended up in the hospital, we are about 40% behind where we were last year,” Henderson said.
Morgan warns against minimizing the severity of the omicron variant because of how fast the virus has spread in a short amount of time. The first case of the variant in the United States was reported by the CDC on Dec. 1, and its currently the dominant strain of COVID-19 amid a rapidly growing surge of cases.
“This is the fastest spread that we have ever seen,” Morgan said. “Any time we are exposed to a virus that is this successful, meaning it’s able to find vulnerable and susceptible people and infect them quickly, we cannot say that it is milder.”
The vaccines are less effective against the omicron variant, but they will help people from getting sick if they do contract the virus. Boosters also can mean the difference between staying at home to battle the virus, or ending up at a hospital, she said.
Another reason to encourage community vaccination is ensuring local businesses have enough healthy employees for services to go uninterrupted, Henderson said. It’s the reason masks are mandated in government buildings, to ensure government services won’t have serious issues because people are out sick.
“I’m of the belief that the more people that are vaccinated, the more likely we are to avoid any kind of economic issues with people running short of employees because they get sick,” he said.
