LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- The first cases of the omicron variant were confirmed in the state of Kentucky on Friday.
On Friday, positive samples were reported in Fayette, Kenton and Campbell counties, Gov. Andy Beshear announced Saturday.
University of Louisville researchers examining wastewater samples for COVID-19 have also found the omicron variant in Jefferson County.
The governor urged mandatory masking to come back in both businesses and schools.
"If we don’t make the decision to put back on that mask in these situations, it’s going disrupt everything we’ve worked so hard to get back up and going,” Beshear told Kentuckians during a press conference Saturday.
Dr. Steven Stack, the state's public health commissioner, said the variant can spread through a community "fairly quickly" and he expects breakthrough cases to go up statewide.
Calling the omicron variant "one of the most transmissible and contagious diseases we've had in the last century," Stack said the variant could represent more than half of all variants in the state within a few weeks.
Stack says a patient infected with the flu is likely to spread it to two other individuals, while a person infected with the Delta variant could infect up to five others in the community.
"Omicron, it may be that one person with omicron could infect up to 18 to 20 additional people," Stack said. "This is not the progression we want."
Stack said the good news is, while the numbers have spiked, hospitalizations have not shown a spike in other areas hit by the omicron variant.
Stack and Beshear continued to urge Kentuckians to get vaccinated and boosted against the coronavirus and the flu. They also suggested purchasing at-home testing kits to use right before any holiday gatherings.
"Now more than ever, vaccination is so important," Stack said.
As of Saturday, 62% of Kentuckians were fully vaccinated.
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