PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Health officials in Montgomery County sid the county's first case of the COVID-19 omicron variant has been detected in a Whitpain Township resident in her 20s. For some in the region, this news impacts how they plan to celebrate the holiday season.
Officials at the Montgomery County Office of Public Health have asked people to take extra precautions during the holidays, warning that omicron could be a more transmissible variant of the coronavirus. West Philadelphia resident Taleah Mitchell told KYW Newsradio she has seen family members get sick with COVID-19, so she won't risk it.
"We don't do holidays together anymore. Phone calls, holiday cards, we don't gather," she said. "I'm not trying to catch it. I don't want my family to catch it."
But as cautious as Mitchell is being, there are also people whose actions are exactly the opposite.
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"COVID-19 hasn't changed my way of living at all. In the past two years, I have not changed anything I have done," said Thomas Brion of Manayunk, who said he plans to take his family to see relatives for the holidays.
Unlike Mitchell, Brion said he knows no personal contacts who have gotten sick, and he and his family are unvaccinated. They still plan to gather indoors. "I don't feel scared about it at all. We're all fine. Nobody's been sick about it or anything," he said.
But Montgomery County health officials warned those who are unvaccinated are more susceptible to the virus and more serious, potentially deadly infection. Philadelphia officials have asked people not to gather this holiday season, during a time when many people were looking forward to returning to some familiar traditions.
Montgomery County Medical Director Dr. Richard Lorraine said vaccinations provide the best defense against COVID-19. Free vaccinations are available to people ages 5 and up, with booster shots available to those ages 16 and up.
"I know a lot of people went back to doing things that they normally would do, but for myself and my family, no," said Mitchell.
"I think the pandemic as a whole changed a lot for everyone. So whether it's a new variant come in, it's just never going to be the same until the pandemic is over."
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