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ELKINS -- Even though COVID-19 numbers have declined in recent weeks and the latest surge of the virus may now be in the rearview mirror, local health officials are warning residents not to let their guard down -- especially with the Mountain State Forest Festival beginning Saturday.
"COVID-19 is still in our community and people are still getting sick from it," Bonnie Woodrum, the Randolph-Elkins Health Department's infectious disease specialist, told The Inter-Mountain Monday. "Most people have stopped wearing masks and taking the extra precautions they once were. So the best way to protect yourself is to make sure you get the variant booster."
Currently Omicron BA. 5 is the most dominant variant of COVID-19. Earlier this month a booster for it and the BA.4 variant made its way to West Virginia and is currently available at several local locations. More than 4 millions Americans have received the updated shots since they were made available to the public.
"Right now we have the new booster and we are offering it for free," said Woodrum. "We have both Pfizer and Moderna and all you have to do is make an appointment to get it."
Woodrum said in order to receive the new booster, however, people must have had at least their first two basic vaccine injections. It must also have been at least two months from any other kind of vaccination and people who have recently had COVID must wait 90 days.
With the Mountain State Forest Festival right around the corner, Woodrum said it's better to be safe than sorry. The Forest Festival was canceled in 2020 and 2021 due to COVID-19 concerns.
"A lot of people are going to be gathering during the festival and there are going to be people coming into town from all over," she said. "It is better to be protected not only for yourself, but for the others in your family who may have a weakened immune system. Those are still the people who it is affecting the most."
Woodrum said even though many of the symptoms with the BA.5 variant are relatively mild, experts have learned there may be some long-term health effects from it. Symptoms for BA.5 are much like the original variant -- runny nose, cough, sore throat, fever, headaches, muscle pain and fatigue.
The West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources listed 1,402 active cases in the state Monday. That number is 906 more than reported on Friday.
The DHHR database listed Randolph County with 20 active cases on Monday. It listed Upshur County with 23, Barbour County with eight, Pocahontas County with six, and Tucker County with five.
"We know that the numbers are much greater than what the DHHR is releasing," Woodrum said. "You can probably quadruple any of those numbers and you will get where we actually are."
Woodrum said the state's numbers are inaccurate because health departments are not submitting tests like they were before. She said home testing and people not getting tested at all factor into the numbers being off.
There have now been 7,396 COVID-related deaths in the Mountain State since the virus began, officials said. Davis Medical Center currently has four patients admitted to the hospital with COVID. One of those individuals is in the Intensive Care Unit.