Coronavirus omicron updates: Here’s what to know in North Carolina on Dec. 22
We’re tracking the most up-to-date information about the coronavirus and vaccines in North Carolina. Check back for updates.
More than 4,800 cases added
At least 1,607,378 people in North Carolina have tested positive for the coronavirus, and at least 19,233 have died since March 2020, according to state health officials.
The N.C. Department of Health and Human Services on Wednesday, Dec. 22, reported 4,889 new COVID-19 cases, up from 2,894 the day before. Due to the Christmas holiday, the state said it doesn’t plan to update daily case counts again until Dec. 28.
There were 50 additional coronavirus-related deaths on Dec. 22. Health officials don’t specify the dates on which newly reported deaths occurred.
At least 1,680 people were reported hospitalized with COVID-19 on Dec. 22, including 444 adults being treated in intensive care units, health officials said.
As of Dec. 20, the latest date with available information, 10.4% of coronavirus tests were reported positive. Health officials say 5% or lower is the target rate to slow the spread of the virus.
Roughly 73% of adults in North Carolina have received at least one dose of a coronavirus vaccine, and about 69% have been fully vaccinated. Out of the state’s total population, about 58% are fully vaccinated and 62% have received at least one dose. State officials round vaccination numbers to the nearest whole number.
Is omicron spreading in the Triangle?
New COVID-19 cases are surging in North Carolina after the state reported its first case of the highly-contagious omicron variant on Dec. 10.
While the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention don’t have up-to-date figures on the number of omicron cases in each state, the variant currently makes up about 73% of new cases nationwide and over 95% of cases in the Southeast, The News & Observer reported.
Wake, Durham and Orange counties have seen over 3,600 new COVID-19 cases in the past week — up from 2,700 the previous week and 1,760 the week before Thanksgiving.
Hospitalizations in the Triangle climbed to 207 on Dec. 21, up from 143 before Thanksgiving, according to The N&O.
59 patients test positive of COVID at rehab center
At least 59 people, including 41 patients and 18 workers, have tested positive for the coronavirus at the Carolina Rehab Center of Cumberland, according to its website.
Data show a total of 143 infections have been linked to the rehab center in Fayetteville since May 2020.
The most recent case numbers were published one day after the N.C. Department of Health and Human Services released its statewide report showing 87 cases at the center. That list of ongoing outbreaks said the counts were preliminary and “subject to change,” according to DHHS.
According to the statewide list, the outbreak at Carolina Rehab Center is the second-largest in North Carolina behind O’Berry Neuro-Medical Treatment Center in Wayne County, where 193 cases were reported.
Wake experiencing long lines for COVID tests
Wake County’s COVID-19 test sites were flooded with long lines on Wednesday, Dec. 22, as people rushed to get tested ahead of Christmas.
Some people reported waiting as long as 45 minutes at the Kidd Road testing site, The News & Observer reported. And while the county does require an appointment to get tested, many in line don’t have them.
Wake County spokesperson Leah Holdren said test sites in Raleigh have more appointments and more traffic moving through while some smaller sites don’t have parking lots big enough to accommodate so many cars. She also said the lines aren’t separated between people who do and don’t have appointments.
“We ask the public to have patience as there are thousands of people trying to get tested around the county before the holidays,” Holdren said. “We are having the people show up on the sites without appointments. This slows the process down, as the staff help them out of the line so they can pull over and make an appointment to allow those who have scheduled appointments through.”
Duke delays in-person classes for spring
Duke University announced it will start the spring semester remotely amid an expected uptick in COVID-19 cases caused by the omicron variant.
Undergraduate, graduate and professional classes will be held remote from Jan. 5-8 with in-person instruction expected to return on Jan. 10, The News & Observer reported.
ACC changes forfeit policy for teams impacted by COVID
The ACC changed its forfeit rule on Wednesday, Dec. 22, that governed teams unable to play a game because of positive COVID-19 cases.
Under the new rule, the ACC will allow a team to play as long as it has seven available scholarship players and one coach, The News & Observer reported. If they don’t have the required number of participants, the game will be declared a no contest instead of a forfeit.
Teams that do meet the requirements and decide not to play will be forfeiting, the league said.
The rule will apply retroactively, according to The N&O, so previously forfeited games will now be considered a no contest.
Wake guidance calls for limiting parents in schools
Despite eased state recommendations, guidance from the state’s largest school district still calls on its campuses to limit “non-essential visitors.”
Lisa Luten, a spokesperson for the Wake County district, said each principal can make decisions about having visitors. Some parents have wanted schools to let them back inside to volunteer and visit, The News & Observer reported.
“Let’s get these kids back to having a normal setting, and having parents help at school is part of that normal setting,” said Raleigh parent Suzanne Templeton.
While parents were welcomed on campuses for past school events, a toolkit introduced last year required schools to have restrictions on visitors last school year. After more people got vaccinated, the N.C. Department of Health and Human Services loosened the rules and some Triangle-area school districts started to allow guests inside.
Duke men’s team is ‘more aware’ as COVID spreads
The Duke University men’s basketball team members are “more aware” of their interactions as the coronavirus continues to spread, according to an associate head coach.
Jon Scheyer also said the program will continue to practice diligence as the team plays Virginia Tech on Dec. 22, marking its first Atlantic Coast Conference game of the season. The league’s rules force teams to forfeit if players can’t hit the court due to coronavirus cases.
“This has been a good wake up call, not only for us, but I think for our country, for everybody, that we need to still be safe and handle things the right way,” Scheyer said, according to The News & Observer. “Our guys want to play games. They’ll do whatever it takes in order for that to happen. And we’ll continue to stay diligent.”
While the team is fully vaccinated, coronavirus concerns have impacted several college games nationwide and led assistant coach Nolan Smith to enter Duke’s health and safety protocols last week, the N&O reported.
Wake website back after crash amid scramble to book COVID tests
Wake County’s website was restored just after 5 p.m. on Tuesday, Dec. 21, after a software update caused it to crash in the morning, hindering residents’ ability to book COVID-19 test appointments ahead of the holiday.
People could still sign up for a vaccine or test online, even while the county website was down, The News & Observer reported.
COVID-19 tests could be booked at https://wakegov.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_6A37b8HlUPXbTrU, while vaccine appointments were available at https://wakegov.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_bDSxDSuxacKYs8C.
A Wake County spokesperson said they had about 8,000 open testing appointments before Christmas as of Tuesday morning.
Three Charlotte-area colleges will require booster shots
Davidson College, Queens University and Johnson & Wales University in the Charlotte area will now require students and workers to get a COVID-19 booster shot before the start of the spring semester.
The deadline for compliance is Jan. 20 at Davidson and Feb. 15 at Queens, The Charlotte Observer reported.
Johnson & Wales set a deadline of March 1, or within 30 days of being eligible for a booster shot.
How to prepare for post-holiday COVID spike
Health experts shared tips with The News & Observer about how residents can prepare for a possible surge in COVID-19 cases after the holidays, including having some at-home test kits on hand and air filtration systems in your house.
Dr. Matthew Koci, a virologist at NC State, said people can open a window or set up air filters to get virus particles out of the air. One way to do that is to construct a Corsi-Rosenthal box using a cheap fan and HEPA filters.
“They aren’t much to look at,” he said. “They aren’t going to get you on the cover of Southern Living, but they get the job done.”
Koci and Dr. Julie Swann, head of the Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering at North Carolina State University, also urged people to get vaccinated against the coronavirus and keep wearing masks.
UNC holds special meeting to discuss omicron
The UNC-CH Faculty Executive Committee will hold a special meeting on Thursday, Dec. 23, to discuss a potential surge in COVID-19 cases caused by the omicron variant.
According to the meeting notice, the committee will discuss “COVID-19 operations for the spring semester,” which is slated to begin Jan. 10, The News & Observer reported.
The meeting comes on the heels of announcements from state health officials warning about the omicron variant’s impact on North Carolina, including potential record-breaking hospitalizations and up to 10,000 new daily COVID-19 cases.
What to know about getting COVID tests in Charlotte, Triangle
Demand for COVID-19 tests may spike as the omicron variant spreads, but there are still options in the Triangle and Charlotte area.
Near Charlotte, Mecklenburg County offers a limited supply of free at-home COVID-19 test kits for those who face barriers to testing.
Multiple CVS locations in the Charlotte area also offer PCR tests, with results taking up to two days. Walgreens offers the same, but appointment times are limited, The Charlotte Observer reported.
Some retailers carry at-home COVID-19 test kits, including from BinaxNOW, InteliSwab, QuickVue and Labcorp Pixel, though they may be out of stock. StarMed continues to offer free testing at various locations in Mecklenburg County, with the number of sites diminishing as Christmas nears.
In the Triangle, there are testing sites in Raleigh, Durham and Chapel Hill, including options listed on the N.C. Department of Health and Human Services website. Though Wake County’s website was down as of early afternoon Dec. 21, people can still book COVID-19 testing online, The News & Observer reported.
For those who want at-home test kits, residents may want to visit the Labcorp website, call a health care provider or pick one up at a pharmacy, the N&O reported.
A complete list of testing options in Charlotte can be found here, and sites in the Triangle can be found here.
This story was originally published December 22, 2021 at 7:14 AM.
