FAIRMONT- Going into the fall, community spread of COVID-19 in Martin and Faribault Counties continues to be high. At the beginning of the month the CDC endorsed an updated booster shot designed to target the more recent and infectious omicron variant which is beginning to be distributed in the area.

“Right now I think we have pretty high community spread throughout the two county area,” said Tim Langer; Public Health Sanitarian for Martin and Faribault counties.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention classifies Martin County as one of two counties in the state with high levels of COVID-19. Based on current case counts the agency advises residents to wear masks when in public places, stay up to date with vaccinations, and get tested if experiencing cold-like or flu-like symptoms.

Martin County has confirmed approximately 40 to 50 cases per week since mid-July according to public health data, but the real number of cases may be much higher due to more testing being performed by individuals.

“It’s really hard to tell where we’re at throughout the county and throughout this area simply because a lot of the testing is done at home,” said Langer.

Over the course of the pandemic the dominant strains of COVID-19 have become more infectious but cause less severe symptoms. These milder symptoms combined with widespread vaccination have reduced chances of serious illness and hospitalization, but the virus continues to be a major threat to public health and its severity remains difficult to predict.

“It’s still something that is a concern. It certainly hasn’t gone away and I think only time will tell where exactly we are with the status of the virus. In my opinion we’re going to deal with this for many years to come; in what form I don’t know,” said Langer.

While the original COVID-19 vaccines are still essential components in mitigating illness and disease spread, they are less effective against the omicron dominant strain. The newly approved boosters from Pfizer and Moderna are bivalent shots which contain the original vaccine and protection against the BA.4 and BA.5 omicron variants. These new boosters will update the body’s immune response and improve its effectiveness against omicron variants. The booster can only be administered at least two months after completing any existing COVID-19 vaccination series.

“We recommend people take advantage of these new vaccine boosters to reduce the spread of this virus over the course of the fall and winter months,” said Langer.

On Sept. 14 human services held a vaccine clinic in Blue Earth and will hold another clinic on Sept. 27 at the Blue Earth UHD clinic. Clinics will be held at the Fairmont National Guard Armory on Sept. 29 and Sept. 30. Vaccination appointments can be scheduled at the human services’ website. Human services plans to have supplies of both Pfizer booster which can be administered to people 12 and up and the Moderna booster which can be delivered to adults only. Additional clinics may be scheduled based on demand. Individuals may also call the human services office to schedule a vaccine appointment separate from these clinic dates.

Testing is another crucial component in preventing COVID-19. People who have been exposed to someone who has tested positive or are experiencing cold-like or flu-like symptoms should take an at home test or schedule an appointment at a local medical provider.

Test kits are available in stores and can be ordered for free from the state at mn.gov/covid19. Because at-home rapid tests can be unreliable, people who test negative are encouraged to take an additional test after 24 to 48 hours.

Preemptive testing before attending large gatherings, particularly if other attendees have underlying health conditions, are older, or are immunocompromised, is another way to prevent infections.

“If you have individuals that are within those categories, doing pre-testing is a great idea. Does it totally eliminate the risk? No, but it really goes a long way towards ensuring you’re not spreading this virus,” said Langer.