Onondaga County reports first COVID-19 omicron case, talks with restaurants about mask mandate

SYRACUSE, N.Y. — Onondaga County has confirmed its first case of the COVID-19 omicron variant after Upstate Medical University identified the strain through sequencing from a positive case in November.

The person infected with the omicron variant has recovered and is out of quarantine.

“The reality is it’s here. It’s just not the dominant variant,” Onondaga County Executive Ryan McMahon said. “The major problem we have is [the] delta [variant], which, from what we can see right now, is the nastier of the two. We’ll learn more about omicron as time goes on.”

Besides the first omicron case, McMahon also said he spoke with area restaurants about the state’s mask mandate during a noon hour COVID-19 briefing at the Oncenter.

Omicron case

Onondaga County Health Commissioner Dr. Indu Gupta told local reporters that the individual with the omicron case was partially vaccinated, having received one of the two doses. The person had some mild symptoms but recovered and didn’t require a hospital stay.

Gupta also noted that none of the contacts of the person with the omicron case have tested positive for the virus.

“As of now, what we know … omicron is highly transmissible … the concern becomes would that create more cases, especially with the holidays coming. How serious that is … that is still up in the air at this point. We are seeing … they’re milder cases at this point,” Gupta said.

The health commissioner also maintains that the vaccine is your best protection.

“The key to prevent further worsening of situation in our community, or anywhere, will be to get your first dose, second dose, or third dose, or the booster,” Gupta said.

Restaurants and mask mandate

McMahon told reporters he had a “good discussion” with area restaurants about the state’s mask mandate that went into effect Monday.

“This is going to be an educational process. We’re going to be a support system for the business community. This is not going to be a punitive process,” McMahon said. “Businesses are going to do their best at this and everybody understands there’s not going to be 100 percent compliance with any mandate. There never has been.”

McMahon also urged the public to continue supporting the area’s restaurants and small businesses.

Weekend COVID-19 data

Four Onondaga County residents died during the weekend, including a male in his 60s; a male in his 70s; and two females in their 80s — all of whom had underlying conditions.

McMahon also reported 1,777 active cases, which is down by 367 since Friday. He reported 229 new cases of COVID-19 on Monday, following 243 positives on Sunday and 270 cases on Saturday.

McMahon also noted that 25 percent of the weekend cases were people age 19 and under, 12 percent were related to travel, and 26 percent were related to household contacts

Onondaga County currently has 59 cases per 100,000 people, according to McMahon.