Governor, health officials: No need to close SC over omicron

By Jeffrey Collins

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP)– South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster says there’s no need to close schools and businesses because of the omicron variant of COVID-19. McMaster says state officials have learned lessons from the first two years of the pandemic and the variant doesn’t seem to be as serious or deadly, especially among the vaccinated. South Carolina’s health director agrees, saying hospitalization numbers haven’t followed the rapid rise in cases. South Carolina reported more than 10,000 new cases of COVID-19 on back-to-back days this past weekend _ a level never seen even in the sharp peaks of the winter and summer of 2021.