Omicron, the latest variant of the COVID-19 virus, had already spread to at least 16 other states before the Mississippi State Department of Health confirmed yesterday that omicron has made its way to Mississippi.

The omicron-infected person recently travelled to New York and back, MSDH reported. MSDH confirmed that the patient is not a high-risk case and did not require hospitalization.

The news came as no surprise to State Health Officer Dr. Thomas Dobbs and other leadership at MSDH, who anticipated omicron's eventual arrival in the state due to the notably contagious nature of the new variant.

“We were prepared for the appearance of this variant in Mississippi,” Dobbs said in yesterday’s press release. “We need to remember that delta is still a very active variant of COVID-19 currently in the state, as well.”

Omicron is too new for sufficient data on the variant’s severity as compared to delta, but early reports from South Africa—where scientists have been accumulating data for a few weeks now—suggests that loss of taste and smell may not be as prevalent with omicron.

“The reports show that patients in South Africa—many of whom were young—have had severe fatigue, but no loss of taste or smell,” Yale Medicine Pulmonologist Dr. Lauren Ferrante said.

COVID-19 cases are on the rise In Mississippi, with MSDH reporting 652 new cases today along with seven fatalities. In a Dec. 3 press briefing with the Mississippi State Medical Association, Dobbs noted that natural immunity from prior infection does not compare to the immunity provided from vaccination.

“There have been some suggestions that even with delta people were getting reinfected after a short period of time, so that prior natural infection clearly is not a panacea,” Dobbs said. “There's still this myth out there that natural infection is better than vaccine immunity. It's not.”

Dobbs urged Mississippians concerned about the new variant to get vaccinated, noting that vaccination is still the best protection from COVID-19 regardless of variant.

“Vaccines remain the best public-health measure to protect people from COVID-19, slow the transmission rate, and reduce the likelihood of new variants emerging,” Dobbs said. “COVID-19 vaccines are highly effective at preventing severe illness, hospitalizations, and death.”

With still less than 50% of Mississippi fully vaccinated, State Epidemiologist Dr. Paul Byers commented on the challenge ahead in vaccinating the state.

“We’ve still got a lot of work to do with our vaccinations,” Byers said. “We’ve not vaccinated fully 50% of our population yet. We've got boosters now that are available. We want to make sure that the people who are eligible for boosters, especially those vulnerable people go ahead and get their shot.”

Email Reporting Fellow Julian Mills at [email protected].