Fresno County 50 percent vaccinated for COVID — but top doctor is still cautious

The fight against COVID-19 continues to advance, but Fresno County’s top health official cautioned Friday that masks and vaccinations continue to play a key role in beating the virus.

“The plane is landing, but we still have a little bit of blue sky left,” said Dr. Rais Vohra, Fresno County interim health officer.

To date, there have been 223,594 cases of COVID-19 in Fresno County, Vohra said in a Friday assessment, along with a total of 2,544 deaths. There were 413 in hospitals.

As for vaccinations, Joe Prado, the county’s assistant director of Public Health, estimated that 50 percent of residents are fully vaccinated against the respiratory disease and that 1,300 doses were being issued per day. He added that 40 percent of those who are fully vaccinated have also had booster doses.

The county continues to monitor the Omicron variant, and Prado said 961 cases have been reported through surveillance. However, Vohra estimated that “many more” of current cases are from the Omicron variant.

As Gov. Gavin Newsom continues to weigh a decision on lifting mask mandates at schools, Vohra noting during Friday’s briefing that whenever masks are not being worn, infections increase.

“You are still expected to use a mask indoors if you are not vaccinated,” he added.

There are two effective oral medications and two IV injections that are effective against COVID-19, Vohra said, but added that supplies continue to be limited for use to the most vulnerable.