Is Covid Still A Concern?

It is down here...

New Zealand is heading into its ninth wave of Covid-19, with data showing 50 hospitalisations and 19 deaths reported in the past week, according to public health expert Michael Baker.

Data shows 94 cases were reported in Canterbury in the past 30 days, with 23 in the past seven. Six people had been admitted to hospital in the past 30 days, with two in the past seven. A total of 11 people in Canterbury had died with Covid attributed as the cause in the past 30 days - two in the last week.

Baker said the virus had settled into a pattern of two waves per year, though Covid-19 had not developed the seasonal pattern typical of other respiratory viruses like influenza and RSV, which peak during winter months.

I do not have low immunity and neither my husband but we make sure to avoid exposure since we just hate being sick. We always wear a mask in airplanes for example, since my husband usually picks up whatever is floating in that air and that was always the case, COVID or no COVID. The fact that wearing the mask became "normal" lol just helped me persuade him to wear one ;).
Locally we avoid crowds when flu and COVID cases are high. We sit outside in restaurants and coffee shops and go grocery shopping in low traffic "hours". If case numbers are exceptionally high we wear mask in grocery store too and we are far from being the only ones. In the Bay Area there is high % of Asian people and they wear a mask often, especially seniors. (smart people). I guess it is much easier to do that in CA than it is in states who hated masks from the beginning but you should take care of your health < 3 and do whatever is necessary. Just make sure to wear N95 and make sure it fits well.

Yeah, we noticed that Asians are very keen on the masks - even before Covid.
Turns out that they wear a mask if they have even a hint of a cold - to prevent spreading it to others. It's a respect thing. Who knew?
Winter's coming up, so I might start wearing a mask just to avoid colds. I'm already Covid-vaccine-jabbed up to the eyeballs.

I don’t wear a mask; I do keep up on the annual vaccinations.

However (there’s always a however…..), last year the CDC recommendation for people 65 years and older and those who are moderately or severely immunocompromised was to receive a second dose of vaccine six months after their first dose.

I get the vaccine boosters yearly (up to nine now) & use ordinary precautions.

I don’t wear a mask, but I’ve had nine COVID-19 vaccinations. I get them about every three or four months. If you get Covid and you have recent vaccinations, it’s very mild

@peterj116 The Asians are use to wearing masks from their home counties mainly because of pollution.

@copyman Well, that's a point.

COVID has to be extremely high before I will wear a mask. I carry one with me when I go to doctors offices as they can be very crowded. I think the stress of getting COVID gives you COVID lol. Once I was treated for HCV 10 years ago my immune system has gotten much stronger. I used to have a cold all winter every winter and now I don't. I haven't had COVID and have slightly modified things related to crowds and gyms.

Yes, you need to be careful about all seasonal respiratory illnesses, including both influenza and COVID-19. When you're immunocompromised, what's a week home sick for others is potentially life-threatening for you.

It's perfectly reasonable to ask casual visitors (like tradespeople) to mask while they're in your house. Any friends and extended family with a cough should mask around you until it clears up. You can also encourage the people closest to you to get their COVID and flu vaccines: if they don't bring the diseases home in the first place, then your body doesn't have to try to fight them off.