NEWS: Wastewater Testing Shows Omicron as Predominant Variant in Florida’s Orange County

As the situation with COVID-19 continues to change and develop, AllEars will be bringing you the latest relevant news that could affect a theme park visit.

We’ve seen policies and mandates change in Florida’s Orange County (where Disney World is located) to reflect the health and safety recommendations of the CDC.

There is still an Indoor Mask Requirement at Disney World

Recently, Orange County was named a hotspot for COVID-19, according to a White House report. An update shows that this could be in part due to concerns about the new Omicron variant that was first detected in the United States on December 1st. The first Omicron case was reported in Florida about a week later. Now, we’ve got another update on the situation with this variant in Florida.

According to the Orlando Sentinel, the Omicron variant is now the predominant strain of COVID-19 in Orange County, Florida. This was discovered through wastewater testing, as there still have not been any clinical cases of the Omicron variant in this county.

Face masks

Instead, Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings reported that “those who are hospitalized are being primarily infected by the delta variant.” About 76% of people who have recently been infected with COVID-19 in Orange County are not fully vaccinated.

Former Face Mask Signage

Dr. Anthony Fauci (director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases) stated that “the current vaccines and boosters stand up to the new variant,” according to current research. Officials are encouraging everyone to get vaccinated and to also receive a booster shot if they’re eligible.

Face mask signs

Although the new variant has become the dominant strain, Orange County is still reporting lower numbers of infection than they were this same time last year. A local state health officer reported that “the 14-day positivity rate remained 3.8%, compared with 9.2% over the same period last year.” In addition, “last December more than 200 county residents died with COVID-19, compared with just two so far this December.”