FILE - This 2020 electron microscope image provided by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases - Rocky Mountain Laboratories shows SARS-CoV-2 virus particles which cause COVID-19, isolated from a patient in the U.S., emerging from the surface of cells cultured in a lab. Pfizer says its experimental pill for COVID-19 cut rates of hospitalization and death by nearly 90% among patients with mild-to-moderate infections. The company announced Friday, Nov. 5, 2021 it will soon ask the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and international regulators to authorize its pill, which is taken twice a day for five days. (NIAID-RML via AP) (Uncredited)
POLK COUNTY, Fla. – Polk County health officials confirm omicron has been detected in the county and are urging residents to take precautions during the holiday weekend as cases continue to increase.
Officials said in a release Wednesday the variant has been officially detected and more than 58.3% of new COVID-19 cases are between the ages of 15 and 44 years old.
“As a community we know how to handle surges. This is our fourth one. We urge the public to take the known precautions,” officials with the Florida Department of Health in Polk County said in a release.
The omicron variant has been fueling a surge in cases across the state and in the U.S. In the latest report from the Florida Department of Health released Friday, the number of new COVID-19 cases in the state has more than quadrupled.
Brenda Argueta is a digital journalist who joined ClickOrlando.com in March 2021. She is the author of the Central Florida Happenings newsletter that goes out every Thursday.
