PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) -- Oregon is currently in the middle of another COVID surge, which means grim news for those that need care as hospitals are full of patients with other illnesses.
The new COVID-19 omicron subvariants BA.4 and BA.5 are reportedly three times as contagious as the original, and people have gotten lax about keeping their distance and wearing a mask.
Recent numbers from the Oregon Health Authority show 46,000 COVID cases last month, close to half in those unvaccinated and vaccinated. Less than 3% of vaccinated cases were hospitalized. Vaccinated people that did get hospitalized are, for the most part, not in the ICU.
Most people are not reporting they have COVID after they use a test kit at home, and the variants are good at dodging antibodies from a vaccine or prior infection, according to reports.
Some people say they'll just wait until fall to get a booster, hoping labs have developed one specific to the latest variants, but that may not happen for several months.
