Media sounds alarm over new Eris COVID variant, pushes for Americans to mask up



The media is sounding the alarm over the newest COVID variant – Eris or EG.5. The mainstream media is already making a push for Americans to mask up as the new variant begins to spread.

The latest COVID variant is called Eris – named after the Greek goddess of strife and discord. The new strain is a descendant of the Omicron variant.

The World Health Organization noted, "EG.5 is a descendent lineage of XBB.1.9.2, which has the same spike amino acid profile as XBB.1.5."

The WHO stated that EG.5 is a "variant of interest."

NBC News reported that EG.5 symptoms are "unlikely to differ much from those caused by other omicron subvariants," which would "include fever, cough, fatigue, muscle aches, and headache."

Scott Roberts, MD, a Yale Medicine infectious diseases specialist, said Eris is not much different from other recent strains, but "there is some extra degree of immune evasiveness because of a slight difference in genotype."

Yale Medicine stated, "However, EG.5 does have one new mutation in its spike protein (the part that facilitates virus entry into the host cell) that can potentially evade some of the immunity acquired after an infection or vaccination."

Roberts admitted, "I am not aware of data that suggests EG.5 leads to worse cases of COVID-19 compared to prior variants."

NBC News noted, "Experts agree that many people probably have underlying protection from severe disease already."

The first case of EG.5 was reported on Feb. 17, 2023.

The CDC reported that EG.5 was the dominant SARS-CoV-2 strain in the third week of August in the U.S., responsible for 20.6% of cases of COVID-19 in the United States. The second most contracted variant that week at 13.3% of cases, was FL 1.5.1, known as Fornax.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that COVID cases have increased by 14% in the past week and COVID deaths are up 8%.

According to Worldometer, the seven-day average of COVID cases was nearly 27,000 as of Aug. 18, compared to exactly a year ago when it was over 768,000. The pandemic high was 3.4 million COVID-19 cases on Jan. 26, 2022.

The legacy media is pushing for Americans to start wearing masks with the new Eris variant swirling around the country.

The New York Times advised, "As for how to behave in response to this trend, that’s a tricky question. Many experts still recommend wearing a mask in crowded indoor settings, but they know that not everyone will want to do so. If you’re at high risk for serious illness, you might want to mask up at the grocery store and avoid eating indoors at restaurants. Other people might just want to wear a mask at the airport, to avoid getting sick during that big summer vacation."

The Washington Post advocated, "Vaccines and boosters still should be encouraged, as should safe social practices such as wearing face masks and keeping rooms well ventilated, health experts say."

The TODAY show recommended "wearing a mask in crowded, indoor spaces."

National Geographic published an article titled: "The EG.5 COVID variant is spiking in the U.S. Is it time to mask up?"

"We should take all of these subvariants very seriously. Using testing kits, when symptoms suggest it could be COVID-19, and masking up and staying home if COVID positive, can slow the spread of the new variant. We need to minimize the spread of the virus as much as we can," Angela Rasmussen – a virologist at Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization in Saskatoon, Canada – told the outlet.

The U.K.'s Independent published an article with the headline: "New COVID wave has begun and masks should be worn again, scientists warn."

A New York hospital has already reinstated its mask mandate because of the new variant.

Syracuse’s Upstate Hospital announced this week: "Effective immediately, mandatory masking is required by all staff, visitors and patients in clinical areas of Upstate University Hospital, Upstate Community Hospital, and ambulatory clinical spaces."

The updated COVID vaccines are expected to be released this fall by Pfizer and Moderna, and are said to combat the Eris variant.

"hese new results, which show that our updated COVID-19 vaccine generates a robust immune response against the rapidly spreading EG.5 and FL.1.5.1 strains, reflects our updated vaccine’s ability to address emerging COVID-19 threats," Moderna President Stephen Hoge, MD, said in a press release.

A Pfizer spokesperson told CNBC that the company's upcoming shot "effectively neutralized" several omicron variants, including Eris and XBB.1.5, in a recent study on mice.

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Experts question lack of clinical data to support FDA decision on monoclonal antibody treatments



The U.S. Food and Drug Administration used the results of laboratory experiments in its sudden and unexpected decision to revoke the emergency use authorizations for certain monoclonal antibody treatments for COVID-19, stating that data showed the treatments were ineffective against the Omicron variant.

On Monday, the FDA announced that the Eli Lilly and the REGEN-COV treatments would no longer be made available to health care providers in areas where Omicron is the dominant COVID-19 variant, including states like Florida, where the treatments have been accessible for months. The decision was slammed by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R), who has encouraged the use of monoclonal antibodies as an effective early treatment for those infected with coronavirus. In a statement responding to the announcement, DeSantis criticized the Biden administration for taking away the treatment option "without a shred of clinical data to support this action."

In Monday's announcement, FDA press officer Chanapa Tantibanchachai wrote that "the most recent information and data available today" supported its determination to de-authorize the monoclonal antibody treatments.

“Because data show these treatments are highly unlikely to be active against the omicron variant, which is circulating at a very high frequency throughout the United States, these treatments are not authorized for use in any U.S. states, territories, and jurisdictions at this time,” the FDA stated. “In the future, if patients in certain geographic regions are likely to be infected or exposed to a variant that is susceptible to these treatments, then use of these treatments may be authorized in these regions.”

TheBlaze reached out to Tantibanchachai requesting a copy of the data cited in the press release. The FDA provided two fact sheets given to health care providers that reported the results of in vitro lab experiments with bamlanivimab-etesevimab and REGEN-COV.

Experts confirmed the reports appear to show that in a lab setting, the monoclonal antibody treatments appear to less effective against the Omicron variant.

"Regarding the sheets you sent, it appears to report the results of an in vitro lab experiment, which found that when Casirivimab and Imdevimab are used together versus a 'pseudotyped virus-like particle' (I assume the spike protein), they are substantially less likely to neutralize the simulated Omicron particles than they were versus simulated versions of particles from the previous variants," said Dr. Jay Bhattacharya, a professor of medicine at Stanford University. Casirivimab and imdevimab are the names of the drugs used in Regeneron's REGEN-COV treatment.

"These results suggest that mABs are less likely to work when given to patients with an Omicron infection than they did versus earlier variants, but the sheets do not provide any clinical evidence from real world use of these medications on patients to verify the findings," he added.

The lack of clinical data for mAb treatments against Omicron — the results of real-world studies with COVID-19 patients — is a criticism the DeSantis administration has leveled against the FDA's decision. The governor and his spokesmen have also observed that mAb treatments have saved lives and questioned why the Biden administration would remove that treatment option.

Kyle Lamb, a researcher with the communications office for DeSantis, told TheBlaze that before the Omicron variant appeared, the mAb treatment manufactured by Regeneron "demonstrated a 70-80 percent reduction in hospitalization and death from COVID-19."

"In Florida, we saw over a 90 percent reduction in total hospitalizations within a few months of implementing monoclonal antibody treatment, due in part both to the peak of our seasonal summer wave and also the success of over 4,000 new mAbs patients a day in our statewide treatment locations," Lamb said.

After reviewing the data from the FDA, Lamb observed that the agency admits on page 45 of its fact-sheet for REGEN-COV "it is not known" how the results of these lab experiments "correlate with clinical outcomes.

"All the evidence given thus far relates to these mAbs being significantly less effective in providing neutralizing antibodies against omicron, but their own literature acknowledges they don't know how well the treatment will hold up against clinical illness," Lamb said.

"Here in Florida, we are still receiving feedback from practitioners and hospitals statewide that they are observing what they believe to be some level of effectiveness against clinical disease, even with Omicron cases," he added.

"That is why we are adamant that the FDA and HHS should be using clinical data to support this decision, and should be transparent with the data they are basing these actions."

DeSantis' critics point out that U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention models indicate the Omicron variant is responsible for 99% of COVID infections in the state, which if true means the Eli Lilly and REGEN-COV treatments may not actually help coronavirus patients.

At a press conference today, DeSantis attempted to make it seem as if there were enough Delta cases in Florida to justify the use of Regeneron, which is totally ineffective against Omicron.\n\nAccording to the CDC, however, Omicron accounts for more than 99% of cases there.pic.twitter.com/Ok37fOUCz9
— Alexander Nazaryan (@Alexander Nazaryan) 1643252159

But Lamb reiterated that the DeSantis administration disagrees with the FDA decision because its data is "not based on real world results against clinical disease."

"More importantly, the decision was also partially based on models by the CDC as to the degree in which Delta has been crowded out by Omicron. If these models even slightly overstate the prevalence of Omicron, hundreds of thousands of Americans could be susceptible to manifestation of more severe disease seen in Delta without access to the most proven treatment option we have," Lamb said.

Bhattacharya agreed with that assessment.

"I do not understand why the FDA pulled mABs since they are still useful versus the Delta strain. Though it is no longer common, there are still patients who are infected with it and mABs have been shown to substantially reduce hospitalization and mortality risk if given early. Pulling the EUA denies those patients an effective early treatment," he said.

Lamb also accused the FDA of being inconsistent regarding the authorizations of COVID-19 treatments that have been shown to have varying effectiveness against Omicron.

"The decision to authorize emergency use for Merck's antiviral pill was in spite of clinical data that demonstrated disappointing results. Another treatment option, Remdesivir, has been conditionally recommended against use by the World Health Organization since November 2020 due to a lack of efficacy against disease in COVID-19 yet it remains authorized by the FDA due to a complete lack of evidence that it is effective," he said.

"Even vaccines are far less efficacious in preventing transmission against Omicron, including boosters. We are puzzled by the inconsistent logic pushed forward by this administration when it comes to treatment options for Floridians and Americans nationwide."

The CDC maintains that evidence supports the effectiveness of FDA authorized or approved vaccines and booster shots against infection, hospitalization, and death from COVID-19.

Stunning new data shows risk of death from Omicron is 91% lower than Delta, CDC-funded study says



The Omicron variant of COVID-19 is far milder than Delta, according to a new study funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The eye-opening data revealed that those infected with the Omicron variant are 91% less likely to die than those who are infected than the Delta strain.

The clinical study was conducted by Kaiser Permanente Southern California health care system – which operates 138 medical offices and 13 medical centers, plus has an affiliation with 37 community hospitals in Southern California. The study analyzed 52,297 Omicron cases and 16,982 Delta cases in Southern California between Nov. 30, 2021, and Jan. 1, 2022.

The study found that those infected with the Omicron variant were 53% less likely to have symptomatic hospitalization, had 74% less chance of being administered to the intensive care unit, and had a 91% lower risk of death compared to individuals with the Delta variant. Only one person of the more than 52,000 people with Omicron died, versus 14 deaths in the 16,982 with Delta. In addition, there were zero patients with Omicron who required mechanical ventilation, according to the research.

"Hospital admissions occurred among 235 (0.5%) and 222 (1.3%) of cases with Omicron and Delta variant infections, respectively," the authors of the study said.

Patients infected with Omicron had a median duration of hospital stay of three fewer days than those with Delta.

"During a period with mixed Delta and Omicron variant circulation, SARS-CoV-2 infections with presumed Omicron variant infection were associated with substantially reduced risk of severe clinical endpoints and shorter durations of hospital stay," the authors of the study concluded.

The CDC-funded study – which has not yet been peer-reviewed – did not reveal the ages of those who died or their vaccination status.

On Wednesday, CDC Director Rochelle Walensky shared the study on Twitter.

Despite the promising news, Walensky tempered the optimism by saying, "While less severe, #Omicron is much more transmissible & we are seeing the unprecedented impact. Over 1M cases in a day, 99% of counties with high transmission & strained healthcare systems. Protect against #COVID19: get vaccinated + boosted, wear a mask & stay home if sick."

While speaking at a White House Covid-19 Response Team briefing on Wednesday, Walensky said public health officials will monitor "deaths over the next several weeks to see the impact of Omicron on mortality."

"Given the sheer number of cases, we may see deaths from Omicron, but I suspect the deaths we're seeing now are still from Delta," the CDC head revealed.

While less severe, #Omicron is much more transmissible & we are seeing the unprecedented impact.\n\nOver 1M cases in a day, 99% of counties with high transmission & strained healthcare systems.\n\nProtect against #COVID19: get vaccinated + boosted, wear a mask & stay home if sick.
— Rochelle Walensky, MD, MPH (@Rochelle Walensky, MD, MPH) 1642008210

The Omicron strain became the dominant variant in mid-December and now accounts for an estimated 98.3% of all new cases, according to CDC data.

There were 829,209 cases of COVID-19 in the U.S. on Jan. 12 compared to 90,024 cases on Dec. 12.

On Tuesday, Dr. Anthony Fauci acknowledged how transmissible the Omicron variant is and said nearly everyone will contract it.

"Omicron, with its extraordinary, unprecedented degree of efficiency of transmissibility, will ultimately find just about everybody," Fauci told J. Stephen Morrison – senior vice president of the Center for Strategic and International Studies. "Those who have been vaccinated ... and boosted would get exposed. Some, maybe a lot of them, will get infected but will very likely, with some exceptions, do reasonably well in the sense of not having hospitalization and death."

Also on Tuesday, U.S. Food and Drug Administration acting commissioner Dr. Janet Woodcock said that "most people are going to get COVID."

"I think it's hard to process what's actually happening right now, which is: Most people are going to get COVID," Woodcock said at a Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee hearing. "And what we need to do is make sure the hospitals can still function, transportation, you know, other essential services are not disrupted while this happens."