ATHOL — If you’re among the many Americans — including those in Athol — who think the COVID-19 pandemic has pretty much run its course, you would be among the many who need to think again.

Asked about the number of cases in Athol, Public Health Agent Deb Vondal told the Athol Daily News, “They keep slowly rising at this point.

“A month ago,” she said, “we were as low as 21 cases, and the positivity rate was 2.16 percent. That was a month ago — the week ending April 21. Currently, we’re at 5.5 percent positivity rate and we’re at 57 cases.”

Vondal attributed the rise in cases, in part, on “COVID fatigue.”

“Also,” she continued, “the weather is beautiful, and people have almost a false sense of security. Last spring, things were better, but this most recent Omicron subvariant is more transmissible. The state is saying probably 30 percent of our current cases are due to this subvariant.”

Asked if the increase in cases is affecting one age group more than another, Vondal said, “It seems really to be across the board.”

She then harkened back to what Americans have been repeatedly hearing since the start of the pandemic.

“People may not want to hear it,” she said. “It’s all about focusing on our risk reduction and doing what we can do to control it and keep ourselves safe. It’s the same strategies.”

Those strategies? Masks, vaccines, food hygiene and social distancing.

“The CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) website this week — they list for all the states and counties what the community level is — and Worcester County and Athol, and Franklin County, the community level is high. That’s based on their data.

“It’s back to the basics of what people maybe really don’t want to hear. But it’s still back to the basics of wearing a mask in public places, getting vaccinated and boosted.” Vondal added that the vaccination rate for the 01331 ZIP code — the towns of Athol and Phillipston — is still stagnant.

“We went up one percentage point from February, where it’s now 72 percent for first dose and 64 percent for second dose,” she said. “If only 64 percent of the population has had two doses, I don’t know how many are actually getting boosted.

“If only 72 percent have received their first and 64 percent are fully vaccinated, there’s a large proportion of people who still aren’t vaccinated and haven’t received — never mind a booster — but haven’t received a second dose.”

Vondal said she hopes to provide vaccinations for those who want them during Athol Fourth Friday events later this summer. She said 27 people showed up for shots during a clinic held at the YMCA in late April, three of whom received their first dose. All of the others, she said, were there for either their first or second booster.

“We will at some point be running another clinic at the Council on Aging, but I don’t have the date yet,” she said, adding that she also hopes to offer one at Hometown America, the manufactured home park off of Daniel Shays Highway. “I would like to do — now that the Fourth Fridays are happening again — but we’re probably looking at summertime before we could possibly run a clinic. It would likely be July and August, like we did last year.”

Vondal said she’s working through the Montachusett Public Health Network, in association with Fitchburg-based Community Health Centers. She said CHC had a grant extended for another year and has hired people to “just to go out and do vaccination clinics.”

“It really still is important to be vaccinated and boosted,” Vondal stressed. “That is still, although people are still getting COVID, their symptoms are mild, and it is truly still preventing that serious illness and ending up in a hospital — or even death.

“I’m always encouraging vaccinations and booster shots, without a doubt,” she concluded.

Greg Vine can be reached at gvineadn@gmail.com