ALBANY COUNTY — With students returning to class next week, schools are being advised by the governor and the state’s health department to review guidance for COVID-19 prevention from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

“While New Yorkers might want to be done with COVID-19, COVID-19 isn’t done with us,” Governor Kathy Hochul said in a press release issued on Tuesday. “With the increase in hospitalizations and reported cases this summer, I strongly urge everyone to take appropriate precautions to protect themselves and their communities.”

The cause for concern is a new sublineage of the Omicron variant, BA.2.86, that has the potential of escaping the antibodies that protect people from getting sick — even if people have been recently infected or vaccinated.

Only a handful of cases caused by BA.2.86 have been identified worldwide. The CDC in an Aug. 23 risk assessment says, “Based on what CDC knows now, existing tests used to detect and medications used to treat COVID-19 appear to be effective with this variant. BA.2.86 may be more capable of causing infection in people who have previously had COVID-19 or who have received COVID-19 vaccines.

“Scientists are evaluating the effectiveness of the forthcoming, updated COVID-19 vaccine. CDC’s current assessment is that this updated vaccine will be effective at reducing severe disease and hospitalization. At this point, there is no evidence that this variant is causing more severe illness. That assessment may change as additional scientific data are developed.”

The CDC says that the current increase in hospitalizations in the United States is not likely driven by the BA.2.86 variant.

BA.2.86 is a newly designated variant of SARS-CoV-2 that has a number of additional mutations compared with previously detected Omicron variants, the CDC says, and the number of genetic differences is roughly of the same magnitude as seen between the initial Omicron variant (BA.1) and previous variants, such as Delta (B.1.617.2).

Current tests should still detect the new variant, the CDC says, and antiviral treatments should still work against it.

“The large number of mutations in this variant raises concerns of greater escape from existing immunity from vaccines and previous infections compared with other recent variants,” says the CDC. However, the risk assessment also says, “Nearly all the U.S. population has antibodies to SARS-CoV-2 from vaccination, previous infection, or both, and it is likely that these antibodies will continue to provide some protection against severe disease from this variant. This is an area of ongoing scientific investigation.”

The risk assessment also notes that the amount of genomic sequencing of SARS-CoV-2 globally has declined substantially from previous years, meaning more variants may emerge and spread undetected for longer periods of time.

Because cases caused by the BA.2.86 variant have been confirmed globally — three in Denmark, two in South Africa; one in Israel; two in the United States; and one in the United Kingdom, all as of Aug. 23 — it appears international transmission is underway and that many more cases are undetected.

New York state

In New York state, both the health department and the Wadsworth Center, located in Albany County, are monitoring for and analyzing samples of the virus to look for new strains.

“The ongoing dual surveillance strategies of wastewater surveillance and laboratory clinical analysis, conducted with partners at Syracuse University and across the state, have proven vital to New York state’s ability to understand variant spread and the potential impact on public health,” said the Tuesday release from the governor’s office.

The Wadsworth Center “immediately enhanced” early detection efforts in New York state, looking to identify the new BA.2.86 variant, and is working in conjunction with analysts of wastewater data at Syracuse University.

Looking back at the last six months, they found the new strain was not detected in New York.

Within the last four weeks, the Omicron sublineages XBB and XBB.1.5 have been detected in Albany County’s wastewater, according to a July 26 report on the county’s wastewater surveillance.

Additionally, the Wadsworth Center is coordinating with health-care professionals and laboratories statewide to expand the pool of clinical COVID samples submitted for analysis to increase the opportunity for detecting BA.2.86, should it enter the state.

“As we look for this new strain, it is important to note that we do not yet know if it will cause more severe disease or if it will evade prior immunity,” said Wadsworth Center Laboratory of Viral Disease Chief Kirsten St. George in an Aug. 24 statement.  “Scientists across the globe are working to answer those questions right now.”

“We continue to monitor as new strains have emerged, with a particular focus on BA.2.86, the most genetically different strain we have seen since the original Omicron variant,” said State Health Commissioner James McDonald in the release.

“These significant changes are important to note as mutations may allow the virus to evade prior immunity,” he said, adding, “Remember, COVID is now a treatable disease and tests are both easy and highly accurate. Antivirals such as Paxlovid are most effective when started within five days of the onset of symptoms.”

The health department has contacted nursing-home providers across the state, the release said, to alert them to the increase in COVID-19 infections over the past several weeks and to remind them of measures to reduce transmission.

Back to school

The state’s health department recommends that schools review guidance from the CDC for prevention of COVID-19.

Among other measures, the CDC recommends that schools:

— Promote vaccination and testing

Anyone who has COVID symptoms should get tested right away; at-home tests are available at pharmacies statewide. If a test is positive, a health-care provider should be consulted about treatment, which is the most effective close to the onset of symptoms;

— Encourage students, teachers, and faculty to stay home if they are sick and exhibiting symptoms

Those with COVID-19 should follow CDC guidance to avoid transmitting it to others, including isolating for five days after the onset of symptoms, as well as masking and avoiding contact with those who may be at higher risk of negative outcomes;

— Optimize ventilation and maintain improvements to indoor air quality to reduce the risk of germs and contaminants spreading through the air

One CDC report showed that COVID-19 incidence was 37 percent lower in schools that required teachers and staff members to use masks and 39 percent lower in schools that improved ventilation. Ventilation strategies associated with lower school incidence included dilution methods alone, causing a 35-percent lower incidence, or in combination with filtration methods, causing a 48-percent lower incidence.

A 2020 report from the United States Government Accountability Office found that about half of school districts nationwide needed to update or replace multiple systems like heating, ventilation, and air conditioning or plumbing; and

— Teach and reinforce proper handwashing and hygiene practices

The state’s health department advises people to wash their hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds, especially before eating; to avoid touching the eyes, nose, and mouth with unwashed hands; to avoid close contact with people who are sick; to cover coughs and sneezes with a tissue and discard it in a closed container; and to clean frequently touched surfaces and objects.

Schools that experience outbreaks should work with their local health department for timely outbreak response support, the state release said.

Vaccines

In January, the Food and Drug Administration said it would annually assess the SARS-CoV-2 evolution, starting data review each spring, to decide on strain selection for a fall vaccination.

After analyzing data, the FDA advised manufacturers seeking to update their COVID-19 vaccines that they should develop vaccines with a monovalent XBB.1.5 composition.

The new shot is expected to be released by the three major COVID-19 vaccine producers in September, the Tuesday release from the governor’s office said.

However, some virologists are now concerned that BA.2.86 is so different that it could bypass the protection the new booster shot is meant to provide. Tests results on the booster’s effectiveness against BA.286 are not yet available.

Albany County, now in its 181st week of dealing with the virus, still advises on its website that residents stay up to date with vaccines.

The numbers for vaccination in Albany County have hardly budged since May. The state’s dashboard now reports on these two categories:

— People with a primary series, for those who have completed the recommended initial series of a given COVID-19 vaccine product — two doses of Pfizer or Moderna vaccine or one dose of Johnson & Johnson vaccine; and

— People who are up to date, for those who have completed all COVID-19 vaccinations, including the bivalent booster, as appropriate per age and clinical recommendations.

As of Tuesday, 23.9 percent percent of Albany County residents were up to date on vaccines, a gradual increase from 17.9 in February.

At the same time, 76.6 percent of county residents have completed a primary series, up slightly from 76.3 percent in May.

This compares with 76.9 percent of New Yorkers statewide completing a vaccination series, and 15.5 percent being up to date with vaccinations, up from 10.6 percent in February.

Some experts have estimated that vaccinating Americans of all ages could reduce the number of hospitalizations and deaths by 20 percent.

Albany County, throughout the emergency, had listed data on its website regarding patients hospitalized with COVID-19, and deaths caused by the virus. It no longer does so.

The week of May 10, the county’s 165th of dealing with COVID and the week the national emergency ended, the county site reported 630 fatalities — 305 men and 327 women — from COVID-19.

With the ending of mandatory reporting of positive COVID-19 tests, it is hard to track the spread of the virus. So data on deaths and hospitalizations compiled by the CDC become the most reliable gauges.

On Tuesday, the CDC reported that, on the week ending Aug. 19, Albany County had a “low” level of hospital admissions for COVID-19, at 20 admissions or 4 per 100,000 of population. Nationwide, hospital admissions were 4.54 per 100,000, an increase of about 19 percent from the week before.

In Albany County, according to data reported by the state’s health department, on Aug. 28, St. Peter’s Hospital has five patients with COVID-19 and Albany Medical Center Hospital had 19.

Statewide in New York, COVID deaths increased from 1.1 to 2.1 percent for the week ending Aug. 19. New York is one of six states in the 2.0 to 3.9-percent range; the other states all have lower rates.