Health

(NEW YORK) — Kroger and Food Lion shoppers who have purchased frozen veggies should check their freezer for products that have been recalled over potential listeria contamination.

Twin City Foods, Inc. issued a voluntary recall on Tuesday for “a limited quantity of Not-Ready-To Eat Individually Quick Frozen (IQF) Super Sweet Cut Corn and Mixed Vegetables in retail bags, due to a potential for these products to be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes,” the company stated in an announcement shared by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

The Washington and Michigan-based food manufacturer recalled 22 products of various sizes and names that were distributed nationwide at retailers including Kroger, Food Lion, and Albertsons Cos. stores. According to the company’s announcement, “no other products have been affected.”

Click here for a full list with detailed product information, including product codes and expiration dates.

As of time of publication, the company said there “have been no actual consumer reports of human illness or other complaints associated with this product.”

“The recall has been initiated because finished products may potentially be contaminated with the Listeria monocytogenes, based on one customer’s 3rd party lab results for the IQF sweet cut corn,” Twin City Foods, Inc. stated.

Any consumers who may have purchased the recalled products have been urged not to consume it and to return them to the store where they were purchased for a full refund immediately.

Consumers with further questions can contact Twin City Foods through the phone number listed in the announcement on the FDA’s website.

Symptoms, side effects of Listeria monocytogenes

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, listeria can cause severe illness “when the bacteria spread beyond the gut to other parts of the body” after a person consumes contaminated food. Those at higher risk include pregnant people, those aged 65 or older, or anyone who has a weakened immune system, the CDC says.

“For people who are pregnant, Listeria can cause pregnancy loss, premature birth, or a life-threatening infection in their newborn,” the CDC states on its website. “For people who are 65 years or older or who have a weakened immune system, Listeria often results in [severe illness that may lead to] hospitalization and sometimes death.”

Other people can be infected with listeria, but rarely become seriously ill, according to the FDA.

According to the CDC, anyone infected with listeria may experience “mild food poisoning symptoms” such as diarrhea or fever, and many recover without antibiotic treatment.

The CDC has advised people to contact a health care provider if they think they may have eaten contaminated food and are experiencing related symptoms.

“You should seek medical care and tell the doctor about eating possibly contaminated food if you have a fever and other symptoms of possible listeriosis, such as fatigue and muscle aches, within two months after eating possibly contaminated food,” the agency states on its website. “This is especially important if you are pregnant, age 65 or older, or have a weakened immune system.”

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(SONOMA, Calif.) — California health officials have issued an advisory after several people who competed in a Tough Mudder run and obstacle course competition last weekend fell ill with as-yet unexplained symptoms.

The Sonoma County Department of Health Services (SDHS) said it has received multiple reports of rashes, fever, muscle pain, nausea and vomiting among those who participated in the event at the Sonoma Raceway, a car racetrack 30 miles north of San Francisco, on Aug. 19 and 20.

“The Tough Mudder race involved extensive skin exposure to mud. Most affected persons have pustular rash, fever, myalgias, and headache,” read the health advisory, published Wednesday.

According to the SDHS, the symptoms could be due to “a minor illness called Swimmer’s Itch,” also known as cercarial dermatitis, which is caused by an allergic reaction to certain microscopic parasites, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The parasites live in some species of birds and mammals. If their eggs find their way into water and hatch, the larvae can infect a certain species of aquatic snail that in turn release microscopic larvae that can burrow in the skin of humans and cause symptoms, including rashes.

However, the SDHS said the people may be experiencing a staph infection, or a more serious infection from a bacterium known as Aeromonas hydrophila.

Staph infections are caused by staphylococcus bacteria and usually only cause minor skin infections, according to the Mayo Clinic, though the infections can become more serious if the bacteria enters the bloodstream and travels to the host’s bones, heart or lungs.

Aeromonas hydrophila, however, is typically found in fresh water or sewage and, while rare, it can infect humans, with reports of complications including diarrhea, kidney disease, hemolytic uremic syndrome – which occurs when the small blood vessels in the kidneys become damaged and inflamed, potentially leading to kidney failure – meningitis, and sepsis, according to the Public Health Agency of Canada.

“If you participated in the race and have a rash with fever or other symptoms, please see your medical provider or, if you do not have a medical provider, your local emergency department. You may wish to take this Advisory with you. Incubation period is 12 to 48 hours,” the SDHS health advisory states.

The SDHS did not immediately respond to ABC News’ request for comment, nor did organizers of the Tough Mudder event.

Tough Mudder participant Nicole Villagran told local ABC affiliate KGO TV that she did not participate in all of the obstacle course but she still found bumps on her body the next day.

“You wake up the next day and you’re like, ‘What is all this on my arm? Like, what is going on here?'” she said. “And it’s on both arms. That’s where I was digging and doing army crawls and it’s on the inside of my knees where I was pushing off of as well.”

Fellow participant Curtis Vollmar told KGO TV that 12 of the 13 people he did the Tough Mudder event with also experienced the symptoms, though they are fading.

“Pretty much gone,” he said in reference to his arms. “You can’t really see much of it but from the elbows up and knees down, I was just covered in these, like, pimply red blister-type things.”

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(NEW YORK) — Consumers should not purchase and immediately stop using certain eye drops due to potential bacterial or fungal contamination, according to a warning issued by the Food and Drug Administration.

The two specific products listed in the warning are Dr. Berne’s MSM Drops 5% Solution and LightEyez MSM Eye Drops.

There have not been any adverse events reported at this time, according to the FDA.

The products are unapproved drugs and illegally marketed in the U.S. because they contain methylsulfonylmethane (MSM) as an active ingredient, the FDA release added.

“Patients who have signs or symptoms of an eye infection should talk to their health care professional or otherwise seek medical care immediately,” the FDA wrote in its warning.

The company that manufactures the Dr. Berne’s eye drops had verbally agreed to voluntarily recall the product, according to the FDA.

“The FDA has done a random investigation on one of my products, the 5% MSM … They found microbial growth in the sample they tested and recommended a recall on all MSM and Castor Oil products,” Dr. Berne’s said in a statement. “I am doing my own testing with samples using a 3rd party laboratory on all MSM products and will post these results here on Monday. If you have the MSM 5% Lot# 6786, please discontinue using.”

The second company, LightEyez Limited, had not responded to the FDA at the time of the release. ABC News has reached out to LightEyez for comment as well.

The industry has had recent manufacturing issues related to eye drops, prompting sampling and testing by the federal agency, which found the products were not sterile and safe to use.

A previous outbreak of contaminated eye drops was linked to at least four deaths and 14 people going blind, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. An additional 4 people eyeballs surgically removed.

Patients are still advised to stop using EzriCare or Delsam Pharma’s Artificial Tears and Delsam Pharma Artificial Ointment until additional guidance is provided by federal health authorities, according to the latest CDC guidance.

Eye infection symptoms may include yellow, green or clear discharge from the eye as well as redness of the eye or eyelid. Additionally, patients may feel increased sensitivity to light, pain, or discomfort, or experience blurry version, according to the CDC

It’s best to always wash your hands with soap and water before using eye drops to prevent infection, according to the National Institutes of Health. Additionally, you should avoid letting the tip of the eye drop bottle touch your hands, eye, or eye lid.

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(NEW YORK) — Asthma-related emergency room visits spiked in New York in June following a wave of toxic smoke from the Canadian wildfires, according to new federal data.

Researchers looked at ER visits from the New York State Department of Health’s Electronic Syndromic Surveillance System (ESSS) in eight regions across the state from June 1 – 14, in the report published Thursday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

They compared the average of visits between June 1 – 5, with the average on June 7, during which the quality index reached “unhealthy” or “very unhealthy” levels across the state and levels of fine particulate matter, known as PM2.5, were highest.

This was also the day that New York City topped the list of the world’s worst air quality rankings, according to IQ Air, which monitors air quality across the globe.

Between June 1 – 5, the average of asthma-associated ER visits was 80.8. This rose by nearly 82% statewide on June 7 to an average of 147 visits, ESSS data showed. Additionally, every region throughout the state saw an increase of at least 35.4% except for the Adirondacks, located in northeastern New York.

The regions with the largest jumps were the Eastern Lake, Ontario and Central regions, which all saw double the average number of visits on June 7.

By age group, the largest increase was seen among those between ages 10 and 29, tripling from an average of 16.8 visits from June 1 – 5 to an average of 50 visits on June 7.

Previous studies have shown that wildfire smoke is linked to an increase in asthma issues in children that is not seen with air pollution in general.

Experts have previously warned about the dangers of PM2.5, fine inhalable particles that are 30 times smaller in diameter than a human hair.

Because these particles are too small to be seen with the naked eye, they can easily enter the nose and throat and can travel to the lungs, with some of the smallest particles even circulating in the bloodstream, according to the Environmental Protection Agency.

PM2.5 can cause both short-term health effects, even for healthy people, including irritation of the eyes, nose and throat; coughing, sneezing; and shortness of breath and long-term effects such as worsening of conditions such as asthma and heart disease.

Because of climate change, experts have said there will likely be more record-setting wildfires, which in turn will lead to more people inhaling smoke and likely an increase in ER visits.

“As wildfire smoke events become more frequent and widespread, the findings from this analysis can enhance risk communication and better focus response efforts toward persons at increased risk for asthma exacerbations,” the authors wrote. “Characterizing such health outcomes during this wildfire smoke event can guide current and future response efforts.”

The authors recommended strategies to help protect the most vulnerable to asthma exacerbations including communication with asthma patients about the risks of wildfire smoke and with schools to ensure they have wildfire smoke response plans in place.

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(NEW YORK) — Over $1.4 billion has been awarded to clinical trials for COVID-19 vaccines, the development of a new monoclonal antibody, and new vaccines and therapeutic technologies, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced.

The awards were the first set of allocations provided via the administration’s “Project NextGen” — a $5 billion investment announced earlier this year.

“This is an investment in expanding our country’s ability to respond to the future variants that we might see coming out of COVID, it’s an investment in better protecting all of our community, including those who are immunocompromised, and who don’t respond well to the existing vaccines,” said Xavier Becerra, the secretary of Health and Human Services.

The “NextGen” initiative was set to develop future technologies to protect against COVID-19, such as mucosal vaccines delivered through the nose, vaccines that provide broad protection against future variants, as well as different coronavirus, more durable monoclonal antibodies, and technologies to strengthen production of vaccines and therapeutics, according to a HHS press release.

The investments are still vital despite much of the attention on the pandemic fading away, experts say.

“Just because something is no longer a public health emergency doesn’t mean that they’re still not important problems to solve, improvements to make. And when it comes to our medical countermeasures for COVID-19, there’s continued need to make them better,” Dr. Amesh Adalja, an infectious disease specialist at the Johns Hopkins University Center for Health Security, told ABC News.

“Why do we need new cancer therapies? There’s not a public health emergency declaration for cancer. It’s not as if progress in the field stops when there’s not a public health emergency,” he added.

Vaccine uptake of last year’s bivalent booster was much lower than previous shots, with only 20.5% of adults receiving a dose, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. While seemingly low, the important thing is that high-risk individuals were adequately protected, experts say.

“I’m not somebody who thought that the bivalent shot uptake should have been 100%. I think what we wanted was the bivalent shot to have 100% uptake amongst high-risk groups and we probably had about 50% of high-risk groups getting vaccinated,” Adalja said.

Newer COVID vaccine boosters are expected to be available in mid-to-late September and target an omicron subvariant known as XBB.1.5, according to the Food and Drug Administration.

It remains unclear who the CDC will recommend the shot for. Most people may not require an additional booster at this point unless they are at high risk of severe disease, including elderly adults or those who are immunocompromised, some experts say.

“I think by saying everybody needs to get it, people don’t sense that they’re at risk…I think we need to make a case for exactly who needs to be vaccinated again, and why,” Dr. Paul Offit, professor of pediatrics at Children’s Hospital Philadelphia told ABC News.

Health officials have previously suggested that vaccine boosters may become an annual occurrence, similar to the yearly flu shot.

“On the COVID vaccine front, we will now likely have one vaccine shot that’s going to be recommended every year,” Dr. Joseph Kanter, the State Health Officer with the Louisiana Department of Health, told ABC News during a press conference on Aug. 9.

Some experts disagree with a yearly COVID vaccine schedule.

“This notion of a yearly vaccine never made a lot of sense to me. Because by the time you make these booster doses, the virus that you’ve made it for is gone. I believe that happened last year in June of 2022.” Offit said.

“There may be some individuals where more frequent boosting is necessary. So, someone who had a stem cell transplant or someone who had a solid organ transplant, or someone who’s severely immunocompromised, they may need boosting once a year. But a healthy person probably not because the vaccines are really protecting against severe disease and they don’t really have a risk for severe disease,” Adalja said.

The promise with these continued investments, is that newer vaccines may help more broadly protect against newer and upcoming variants, officials say.

“Next Gen is to help us get ahead of this and be able to prepare ourselves for what might be around the corner. And that’s why today’s announcement is so important,” Becerra said.

The investments into the clinical trials will most likely start as early as this winter and work to develop vaccines that target longer lasting protection against future variants, according to the HHS press release.

Meanwhile, the development of a monoclonal antibody will protect people who do not respond to or cannot take existing vaccines, the press release added. Remaining funds will help develop technologies to enable more efficient manufacturing of vaccines and therapeutics.

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(NEW YORK) — As COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations tick up in the United States, multiple institutions say they are reinstating mask mandates, at least temporarily.

Morris Brown College, a historically Black college and university in Atlanta, made the announcement in a letter written to faculty, staff and students by President Dr. Kevin James and posted on Facebook.

“Over the next 14 days…all students and employees are required to wear face masks (staff may remove in their offices while alone),” the letter read.

Meanwhile, Lionsgate, the entertainment company, said certain employees at headquarters are being required to wear masks again.

“The LA County Department of Public Health is requiring Lionsgate employees on the 3rd & 5th floors of our 2700 Colorado Avenue headquarters in Santa Monica to wear masks due to a cluster of COVID cases,” Peter Wilkes, chief communications officer for Lionsgate, told ABC News in an email. “It is the policy of the LA County Department of Health to require masking in workplaces that have a cluster of cases.”

Additionally, several hospitals across the U.S. are reintroducing mask mandates for staff, patients and visitors, according to reports.

Even as the country heads into fall with the start of schools and cooler weather, meaning more people spending time indoors, experts say they don’t currently envision a widespread return to mask mandates.

“I don’t see that as something that we’re likely going to be adopting …” Dr. Albert Ko, a professor of epidemiology and medicine at the Yale School of Public Health told ABC News.

Last week, COVID hospitalizations rose for the fifth consecutive week, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

For the week ending Aug. 12, hospitalizations rose 21.6% from 10,370 new admissions to 12,612, CDC data shows. Despite the increase, it’s still among the lowest hospitalizations recorded since the pandemic began.

This is similar to what’s being seen on the local level, with a rise in cases recorded in Fulton County — where Atlanta is located — a July 2023 epidemiology report from the Fulton County Board of Health shows.

Data from the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health shows COVID test positivity has increased. COVID hospitalizations also rose to 330, higher than this past summer but among the lowest numbers seen during the pandemic.

“An upswing is not a surge; it’s not even a wave,” Dr. Shira Doron, chief infection control officer for Tufts Medicine, told ABC News. “What we’re seeing is a very gradual and small upward trajectory of cases and hospitalizations, without deaths really going along, which is great news.”

Doron said percentage increases may seem scary but the raw numbers show the figures are actually quite small.

“My hospital has had between zero and three patients who have tested positive for COVID any given day since May,” she said. “So, all week, it’s been one. If tomorrow, there were two, you’d call that a 100% increase, which sounds so big, but…it’s not appropriate to use percentage terms when you’re talking about increases that start really small.”

Ko and Doron both said that mask mandates in school settings and workplaces are only so effective because mandates are not widespread. Therefore, people are putting themselves in other situations where they could be infected.

“Let’s say I’m a classroom and we have a mask mandate,” Ko said. “I can wear that mask, but once I step out, I may get infected, right? And then I can return to the classroom, I can wear the mask, and that may prevent or reduce some of the transmission, but many people are just getting infected outside of that specific setting that the mask mandate.”

The experts say there may be instances where masking is useful, such as being around people who are at high risk for severe complications, such as the elderly and the immunocompromised but — unless an omicron-like surge occurs — people may want to consider masking based on their own risk tolerance.

They also said to watch out for upcoming CDC recommendations about the new COVID booster targeting newer variants and to stay up to date on vaccinations.

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(NEW YORK) — Two cases of a rare mosquito-borne disease have been reported in Alabama, including one death, according to officials.

The cases of Eastern Equine Encephalitis (EEE) occurred in Spanish Fort, Alabama, — nine miles east of Mobile — the city said in a Facebook update.

The Alabama Department of Public Health declined to provide any information about the patients including names, ages or sexes.

Dr. Wes Stubblefield, a district medical officer with the ADPH, told ABC News that the cases are the first reported in the state this year. Between 2003 and 2022, just eight cases were reported in Alabama, he said.

EEE is a rare but serious disease that spreads by bites from infected mosquitoes. It does not spread via touching or droplets from coughing or sneezing, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Most people who are infected either show mild symptoms or no symptoms at all. However, severe cases usually begin with fever, headache, chills and vomiting before progressing to encephalitis, which is swelling of the brain, or meningitis, which is swelling of the membranes that surround the brain and spinal cord.

There are no vaccines and no treatments specifically for EEE. The CDC says rest, fluids and over-the-counter pain medications may help relieve some symptoms.

On average, about 11 human cases are reported every year. Many survivors have ongoing neurologic problems including convulsions, paralysis and intellectual disability and about 30% result in death.

As of Aug. 15, just one case of EEE has been reported in the U.S. in a Louisiana patient, according to the CDC. No details are available about the patient or their condition.

In a release on Monday, the ADPH warned the public about protecting themselves and their homes from mosquitoes.

This includes using insect repellant, wearing loose and long shirts and pants, using air conditioning and keeping screens on windows and doors.

Additionally, the City of Spanish Fort, where the cases were located, said in its Facebook post that it sprays for mosquitos weekly and that it is working with the Baldwin County Health Department and the Alabama Department of Public Health “to set mosquito traps in various areas of the City for testing purposes.”

Stubblefield said it’s important to know the mosquito species that cause EEE primarily bite at dawn and dusk compared to the species that cause Zika, for example, which bite during the day.

“We want people to protect themselves the best they can,” he said. “We want our providers to know this is a possibility, especially in the south, in the Gulf region, and how dangerous this virus can be and hopefully we can void any further cases.”

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(NEW YORK) — The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is raising awareness about the potential mistreatment of and discrimination against women receiving maternity care during pregnancy and delivery in the United States.

The federal health agency said the quality of maternity care is important to address because it could help reduce pregnancy-related deaths.

It comes on the heels of a survey finding some women reporting a perception of being mistreated during maternal care as well as disparities seen by race/ethnicity and insurance types.

“We’ve been saying for some time that too many women die during and after pregnancy in this country,” Dr. Debra Houry, the CDC’s chief medical officer, said during a press conference Tuesday. “We know that most pregnancy related deaths are preventable more than 80% and that women from some racial and ethnic minority groups are more affected than others.”

She continued, “This is unacceptable. We know mistreatment and discrimination can have an impact ton maternity care. We have to encourage respectful maternity care.”

Houry described respectful maternity care as preventing mistreatment, communicating effectively and providing care equitably.

Dr. Wanda Barfield, director of the CDC division of reproductive health, said during the press conference that women feeling like they aren’t being heard or that they’re being mistreated could prevent them from seeking care if they are worried something is wrong.

“As a doctor, mother, and Black woman, it is disheartening to hear how common mistreatment is,” she said in a statement.

“We know that racism and discrimination can lead to delays in treatment and sometimes tragic and preventable deaths,” Barfield said. “Healthcare provider trainings on unconscious bias and culturally appropriate care may be a first step in understanding how to provide respectful maternity care to all women.”

The CDC stressed this is especially important because maternal mortality rates have been increasing in the U.S. and continued through the COVID pandemic, data shows.

In 2021, the latest year for which data is available, 1,205 women died of maternal causes in the U.S. with a rate of 32.9 deaths per 100,000 live births.

This is compared with a rate of 23.8 per 100,000 in 2020 and 20.1 per 100,000 in 2021, according to the CDC.

Maternal mortality rates for Black women have been historically higher than rates for white women, a trend that continued through 2021. The maternal mortality rate was 69.9 per 100,000 for Black women, 2.6 times higher than the 26.6 per 100,000 for white women, according to the latest data.

Maternal mortality rates for Hispanic women overtook those of white women for the first time in 2021, with Hispanic women seeing rates of 28 per 100,000.

The CDC encouraged ways for health care systems to rescue pregnancy-related deaths including by encouraging a culture of respect by hiring diverse staff and having unconscious bias and stigma training.

Houry also said it’s important to promote shared decision-making among patients and doctors, improved communication with patients and being culturally aware. She added that doulas and midwives may help improve patient experience by supporting women during pregnancy and delivery.

The CDC also promoted its Hear Her campaign, which has resources for providers and for pregnant and postpartum women about what warning signs to look for so that life-receiving care can be received right away.

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(NEW YORK) — A new study published Monday in JAMA Pediatrics suggests there is a link between more screen time for babies and developmental delays.

Researchers in Japan looked at survey data collected from over 7,000 kids who were 1 year old and found that those who were exposed to screens – defined in the study as “watching television, playing video games, and using mobile phones, tablets, and other electronic devices” – for more than one hour per day appeared to have more delays in developing communication, fine motor skills and problem-solving skills by the time they were 2, 3 or 4 years old.

The study didn’t differentiate between screen time for entertainment or for educational purposes and doesn’t show cause and effect, but showed a dose-response relationship between screen time and development.

“The more screen time these babies had at 1 year of age, the worse their developmental milestones were at 2 years of age, particularly in the realm of communication,” ABC News’ chief health and medical correspondent Dr. Jennifer Ashton told Good Morning America. “Some of those developmental issues, like fine and gross motor skills and problem-solving skills, may have shown a ding at age 2 but then kind of compensated and recovered by age four. But again, this showed that more screen time [is] not good for a one-year-old brain.”

What parents should know about screen time for babies

“Babies at 1 year of age need face-to-face communication, Ashton said. “They need that for their social development. They need that for their language development and you can’t sub that out with a screen.”

Lowering overall screen exposure may be beneficial for kids in the long run.

Screen time for babies

The World Health Organization and the American Academy of Pediatrics recommend that children under a year old should not have any screen time exposure, including watching TV or playing games.

Screen time for older children

Not all screen time for kids is negative. There are possible benefits of screen time for older children, which can include the development of communication and language skills, problem-solving skills, and social and emotional range.

“I think it’s really important to remember this is age-dependent and it’s based on the content not just the quantity,” Ashton said. “Children can learn with screen time. It’s just a matter of what the content is and how much they’re getting.”

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(NEW YORK) — The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said it is tracking a new lineage of the virus that causes COVID-19 after it was detected in the United States.

Named BA.2.86, the strain was first detected in Denmark on July 24 of this year, then Israel, followed by Michigan in August for a total of four cases, according to the open global genome sequencing database GISAID.

“Today we are more prepared than ever to detect and respond to changes in the COVID-19 virus,” a CDC spokesperson told ABC News. “Scientists are working now to understand more about the newly identified lineage in these for cases and we will share more information as it becomes available.”

According to lab data, BA.2.86 has more than 30 mutations in total, much more than other variants currently circulating.

“Based on the available evidence, we do not yet know what risks, if any, this may pose to the public’s health beyond what has been seen with other currently circulating lineages,” the spokesperson said.

On Thursday, the World Health Organization listed BA.2.86 as a “variant under monitoring” also due to its large number of mutations.

Experts told ABC News that even though the number of cases spotted in laboratories is low, the fact that the variant has been detected on three continents suggests a high level of transmissibility and that there could be more cases out there.

“The reason that scientists are concerned, I think it’s the numbers of mutations plus the fact that the four sequences were found on three continents,” said Dr. John Brownstein, an epidemiologist and chief innovation officer at Boston Children’s Hospital. “So that does tell you that it has some level of fitness, to be able to spread and potentially escape the immune system to create infection, but we don’t know the extent.”

Brownstein, an ABC news contributor, said the number of mutations, particularly on the spike protein, which the virus uses to enter and infect cells indicates “features of a variant that could take off.”

However, he explained that because there’s been no real-world data observation done yet, there’s no cause for alarm, just for continued public surveillance.

Recently, CDC data has shown COVID hospitalizations are increasing. For the week ending Aug. 5, hospitalizations rose 14.3% from 9,026 to 10,320 weekly hospitalizations.

Although a double-digit percentage increase seems scary, experts said it’s important to remember hospitalizations are much lower than during other surges such as the omicron surge of winter 2021-22.

Dr. Peter Chin-Hong, an infectious diseases specialist at the University of California, San Francisco, said there is a combination of immunity from vaccines, boosters, previous infection and multiple infections that would stem any potential surge from BA.2.86 or at least lessen the severity.

“Many people won’t get ill because the population has been so exposed with lots of different kinds of COVID and variants and vaccines and previous infections,” he told ABC News. “So, the body’s immune system has already seen a lot of the repertoire of COVID in all different angles. So, it’s unlikely even if it takes off that it will result in a huge wave of illness.”

He added, “For example, if BA.2.86 came in March of 2020, it probably would be a different story, given the lack of population immunity, the repertoire of the immune response in people, then compared to now.”

Until more information is learned about BA.2.864, the CDC said its “advice on protecting yourself from COVID-19 remains the same.”

ABC News’ Sony Salzman contributed to this report.

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