If you haven’t noticed yet, Covid is on the rise once again. Numbers are at new highs and with new variants it’s spreading faster than ever. Lawrence County alone has had about 7,000 cases in the past 2 weeks. Those numbers are only the confirmed cases, We’ve probably had even more that were simply dismissed as a cold, or “nothing serious.”

If we keep assuming it’s not Covid and go out like normal, we’re only going to keep spreading Covid.

You might be asking, where’s the best place to get tested? Well, it depends on where you’re at and what you’re comfortable with. If you’re an introvert or just don’t like dealing with people, you would probably prefer an at-home test, which can be more expensive at times but can be worth it if you truly want to avoid dealing with people. You can also go to a health center if you want more of a traditional doctor experience.

Another option would be drive-thru testing which is available at select Walgreens including the one in Republic, and Springfield. Some Walmarts also offer testing. Drive through tests make the process quick and easy. They're available at certain Walgreens including the one in Republic, MO.

Getting tested is important and most likely easier than you think. Even if you’re afraid of a doctor putting a stick up your nose, there are more options available like saliva tests which are even available as an at-home test now. Saliva tests are also proven to catch the Omicron variant early.

Knowing when to get tested is also important. If somebody around you is experiencing symptoms or has told you they tested positive, you should get tested immediately. If you’re up in the air on getting tested or not you can fill out the CDC coronavirus self checker to see if you need to get tested. Taking testing seriously can help stop the spread and help us move past Covid.

Covid affects everybody around it. Catching it early can save lives even if it’s not yours, certain people can be greatly affected and could even die. So if you’re feeling sick, do everybody a favor and go get tested.

As of late, many news articles have cited rising Omicron cases, or the surge of Omicron, but what exactly is Omicron? Just how different is it from the original Covid-19 strain, or the other variants we’ve heard about?

Well, first we should define exactly what a variant is. In the context of biology, or in this case, microbiology and virology, a variant is a subtype of a microorganism (such as a virus) that is genetically distinct from the main strain and other variants, but not different enough to be considered a separate thing altogether.

It's like different breeds of dogs. Beagles, Golden Retrievers, and Huskies are all dogs, but are different enough from each other that we refer to them with different names. It’s the same principle.

Now that brings us to Omicron. Studies on this variant are fairly preliminary, but seem to indicate that while it tends to cause milder cases of COVID-19 (the name given to the condition caused by any virus descended from the original strain) than say, the Delta strains, it is much more infectious than any other variant, and is vaccine resistant.

It is important to note that when medical professionals say mild, that can mean a lot of things. It could mean that you’re just a little sniffly, or that you are incredibly sick but not dying. When it comes to COVID, mild just means you don’t require hospitalization.

Current data seems to indicate that being vaccinated means that one is more likely to come down with milder COVID symptoms from Omicron than someone unvaccinated. However, most of that data is based on the country Omicron was first detected in, South Africa, which notably has a large population of young people. The median age for the entire population is about 27. We can say with confidence that Omicron is milder than Delta, based on data in the US, but without more information we cannot say how much milder, or if the reason it is milder is due to the higher immunity rate than when we started this pandemic.

Because Omicron differs enough from the main COVID strain enough that the vaccine does not always provide a sufficient immune boost, companies such as Pfizer and Biotech are in the process of testing vaccines specifically for Omicron, although it is unclear when they will become available to the general public.

Dr. Anthony Fauci, in his recent interview on January 23, has said that he is optimistic that Omicron cases will peak in February, but that it is not a sure thing. "You never want to be overconfident when you're dealing with this virus," he said. “Things are looking good. We don't want to get overconfident, but they look like they're going in the right direction right now,” he later added.

States in the northeast and upper midwest have already had such peaks, followed by sharp declines. Meanwhile, Omicron cases in southern and western states continue to rise.

You can check reported COVID cases in Missouri here, as well as other statistics.