Health

Factcheck: False: People do not need to use masks if they have been vaccinated or have had COVID-19

Claim: People who have been infected with COVID-19 or who have been vaccinated are immune from getting COVID-19 and do not need to wear masks.

Fact Check: False. People who have had COVID-19 or have been vaccinated can still get COVID-19 and can be reinfected. An important tool against this is wearing masks indoors and when in public.

By HEATHER M. BUTTS, JD, MPH, MA

Special to the AmNews

Prior to May 2021, less than 2% of new COVID-19 cases in New York City were reinfections, according to New York State Department of Health data. A year later, in May 2022, over 12% of new cases are reinfections. COVID19 reinfections are defined as a person testing positive again for COVID-19 90 days or more after they first test positive. According to the New York Health Data site, “The number of people who have been infected with COVID for a second time has increased dramatically.” Two crucial factors contributing to the latest increase in both COVID-19 infections and reinfections are the rise of the COVID-19 Omicron variant, and the relaxing of COVID19 mandates such as mask wearing. There is an increasing body of evidence that the Omicron variant has the ability to reinfect individuals who have previously had COVID-19 in ways that previous variants have been unable to do. According to a paper published in late 2021 the authors found “evidence of a substantial and ongoing increase in the risk of reinfection that is temporally consistent with the timing of the emergence of the Omicron variant…at least partially driven by an increased ability to infect previously infected individuals. In contrast, we find no evidence that reinfection risk increased as a result of the emergence of Beta or Delta variants.”

The World Health Organization has stated that the Omicron variant “can evade previous immunity in people—so it can still infect those who have had COVID-19 in the past, those who are unvaccinated, and those who were vaccinated many months ago. Individuals who have recovered from COVID-19 are 3 to 5 times more likely to be reinfected with Omicron compared to Delta.” With Omicron and its subvariants leading to increased infections and reinfections, how can individuals protect themselves?

In an interview for The Capitol Press Room WCNY Radio, CUNY Graduate School of Public Health & Health Policy Distinguished Professor of Epidemiology Dr. Denis Nash said, “I think it remains important to take these other precautions that we know can limit community spread and we know can protect people…if everyone were to be vaccinated and boosted tomorrow it wouldn’t impact what’s going on with community transmission for quite some time so I believe that there needs to be a reliance on many of the other strategies that we know

See BLACKLIGHT on page 29

NYC Test & Trace Corps expands online COVID tool for those who are exposed, test positive

The NYC Test & Trace Corps announced today that it has expanded its COVID-19 Quarantine and Isolation Guidance Tool (https:// covid19.nychealthandhospitals. org/COVID19help) to provide New Yorkers direct connections to order care packages to help separate safely and receive COVID-19 therapeutics, including oral antiviral prescriptions and monoclonal antibody treatments. In addition to this critical resource portal, the Quarantine and Isolation Guidance Tool offers personalized guidance to New Yorkers who were exposed to, test positive for or have symptoms consistent with COVID19. “We want all New Yorkers to feel confident they know what to do if they have an exposure to someone with COVID-19, or if they test positive themselves,” said Dr. Ted Long, executive director of the NYC Test & Trace Corps and senior vice president for Ambulatory Care and Population Health at NYC Health + Hospitals. “This new tool offers tailored guidance to you, based on your vaccination status. Now, it also can also immediately connect you to resources you might need to safely separate, or a lifesaving medication that can be delivered to you at home. I encourage you to use this tool to keep yourself and your city safe.”

The COVID-19 Quarantine and Isolation Guidance Tool provides a mechanism for New Yorkers to navigate complex COVID-19 guidance based on their history of infection, date of exposure or positive test, symptoms and vaccination status. After answering a few short questions, users receive quarantine or isolation guidance specific to their circumstances.

If eligible, New Yorkers are directed to an order form to request free delivery of a Take Care care package, which contains enough personal protective equipment (PPE) for a household of three for up to 10 days, including medical grade masks, hand sanitizer, a thermometer and two rapid antigen tests. New Yorkers can also arrange to have free meal delivery so they can safely remain at home. To date, Test & Trace has sent over 640,000 care packages and delivered over 2.3 million meals to New Yorkers in quarantine or isolation.

In addition, eligible users will be directed to the Virtual ExpressCare website or 212-COVID19 where they can be connected to a clinician who can refer them to monoclonal antibody treatment or prescribe oral antiviral medications like Paxlovid and arrange to have it delivered to their home that same day.

If you or a loved one need immediate assistance, please call the NYC Test & Trace Corps COVID Hotline at 212-COVID19.

The NYC Test & Trace Corps is the City’s comprehensive effort to provide accessible, no-cost COVID-19 testing, support those infected or exposed to the virus with quarantine and isolation resources, and provide connections to treatment for eligible New Yorkers. Through a partnership with NYC Health + Hospitals and the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, the Test & Trace Corps allows the city to immediately isolate and care for those who test positive for the virus. To help all New Yorkers safely separate and monitor their health status, the Take Care pillar of the Test & Trace Corps also offers free

(Image by Alexandra Koch from Pixabay) meal delivery and other quarantine resources. NYC Health + Hospitals is the largest public healthcare system in the nation, serving more than a million New Yorkers annually in more than 70 patient care locations across the city’s five boroughs. A robust network of outpatient, neighborhood-based primary and specialty care centers anchors care coordination with the system’s trauma centers, nursing homes, post-acute care centers, home care agency and MetroPlus health plan—all supported by 11 essential hospitals. Its diverse workforce of more than 42,000 employees is uniquely focused on empowering New Yorkers, without exception, to live the healthiest life possible. For more information, visit www.nychealthandhospitals.org and stay connected on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/ NYCHealthSystem or Twitter at @NYCHealthSystem.