Three and a half years into the outbreak, SARS-CoV-2, is still circulating, and we are undergoing a summer Covid-19 wave.

Indicators like virus levels in wastewater, emergency room visits, test positivity and hospital admissions are ticking up.

Thanks to vaccines, Paxlovid and Metformin, the severity of the disease has lessened and deaths are declining. However, immunity from vaccines and infections wanes over time, so we are still at risk for becoming infected and suffering from long Covid and other serious conditions including blood clots and heart problems.

We must not forget that tens of thousands of people die from Covid and the flu every year. So it’s important to adopt multi-pronged measures to prevent viruses from taking hold, including:

• obtaining the new monovalent Covid-19 and flu vaccines when they are available this fall
• getting your infant children new antibodies for RSV and if you’re indicated to, getting an RSV vaccine yourself
• masking indoors in crowded spaces and during high levels of transmissions
• improving air quality via 5 air changes per hour

Here are great resources to consult regarding all things Covid and other viruses.

KPFA Radio’s Corona Calls on Mondays at 7:30am PT features Dr. John Swartzberg, clinical professor emeritus of infectious diseases at UC Berkeley’s School of Public Health, who takes questions via call-in during the live broadcast. It’s also a podcast.

Violet Blue’s Huge, FREE covid safety resource list. Violet also has a weekly update on Covid-19 research and news on Thursdays via Substack that always ends with news about her two beloved feline friends.

Your Local Epidemiologist Katelyn Jetelina‘s current Substack newsletter has good info on antigen (at-home) tests and false positives and what to do if you test positive.

To learn even more, be sure to read the comments from their devoted Substack readers.

Here are the National Institutes of Health guidelines for treatment of Covid-19 in pregnancy and after delivery.

Stay healthy!