It takes about two weeks after vaccination until the body develops sufficient immunity against both viruses, so this is the ideal time to get the two vaccines before getting together with family during the upcoming holidays.

“Don’t let flu, COVID-19 or respiratory syncytial virus ruin your family reunions this holiday season,” said Wilma J. Wooten, M.D., M.P.H., County public health officer. “Protect yourself and your family, stay up to date on flu and COVID-19 vaccines and consider masking in crowded indoor spaces until virus activity slows.”

COVID-19 and flu vaccines are widely available across the region and can be administered during the same visit. It’s important to note that the flu vaccine does not protect people against COVID and the COVID vaccine or booster does not protect against the flu. Therefore, it is recommended that eligible San Diegans get vaccinated for both viruses.

There is no vaccine against respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) but established disease prevention measures can protect people from getting ill with any of the three respiratory viruses that are currently circulating in the community.

These measures include:

• Consider a well-fitting, good-quality mask, especially indoors or in crowded spaces.
• Wash hands thoroughly and often;
• Use hand sanitizers, if unable to wash hands;
• Stay away from sick people;
• Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth;
• Clean commonly touched surfaces; and
• If you are sick, stay home and avoid contact with others.

Local Vaccination Efforts

COVID-19 booster vaccination rates in San Diego County are right in line with rates in other parts of the state. So far, 328,172 San Diegans have received their bivalent booster.

That’s about 13% of eligible County residents, about the same as rates in other parts of the state

COVID-19 Vaccination Progress:

• More than 2.68 million or 80.3% of San Diegans received the primary series of one of the approved COVID-19 vaccines.
• Boosters administered: 1,490,046 or 59.8% of 2,490,511 eligible San Diegans.
• More vaccination information can be found at coronavirus-sd.com/vaccine.

COVID-19 Deaths:

• 12 additional deaths were reported since the last report on Nov. 3, 2022. The region’s total is 5,543.
• Of the 12 additional deaths, five were women and seven were men. They died between Sept. 1, 2021 and Oct. 1, 2022. None of the newly reported deaths occurred in the last two weeks.
• Six of the people who died were 80 years or older, two were in their 70s, two were in their 60s and two were in their 50s.
• Eight received at least the primary series of the vaccine and four had not.
• Ten had underlying medical conditions and two did not have any underlying medical conditions.

COVID-19 Cases, Case Rates and Testing:

• 2,016 COVID-19 cases were reported to the County in the past seven days (Nov. 1 to Nov. 7, 2022). The region’s total is now 933,270.
• The 2,016 cases reported in the past week were higher compared to the 1,702 infections identified the previous week (Oct. 25 to Oct. 31, 2022).
• 5,957 tests were reported to the County on Nov. 5, and the percentage of new positive cases was 4.1% (Data through Nov. 5).
• The 14-day rolling percentage of positive cases, among tests reported through Nov. 5, is 3.8%.

Influenza Activity

The County Health and Human Services Agency now publishes the Respiratory Virus Surveillance Report weekly. The report is published each Thursday and tracks key respiratory illness indicators, including flu cases and deaths.

For the week ending Nov. 5, 2022, the report shows the following:

• No additional flu deaths, the season’s total remains at 2
• Emergency department visits for influenza-like illness: 9% of all visits (compared with 7% the previous week)
• Lab-confirmed influenza cases for the week: 1,732 (compared to 1,201 the previous week)
• Total lab-confirmed cases to date: 5,471 (compared to 291 at the same time last season and a 259 prior 5-year average during the same week)

(Source: County of San Diego Communications Office)

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