COVID: Omicron and Production Protocols
An update on production and the latest variant of concern, named Omicron.
Update on Omicron
On 26 November 2021, WHO designated the variant B.1.1.529 a variant of concern, named Omicron, on the advice of WHO’s Technical Advisory Group on Virus Evolution (TAG-VE). This decision was based on the evidence presented to the TAG-VE that Omicron has several mutations that may have an impact on how it behaves, for example, on how easily it spreads or the severity of illness it causes. Here is a summary of what is currently known.
Current knowledge about Omicron
Researchers in South Africa and around the world are conducting studies to better understand many aspects of Omicron and will continue to share the findings of these studies as they become available.
Transmissibility: It is not yet clear whether Omicron is more transmissible (e.g., more easily spread from person to person) compared to other variants, including Delta. The number of people testing positive has risen in areas of South Africa affected by this variant, but epidemiologic studies are underway to understand if it is because of Omicron or other factors.
Severity of disease: It is not yet clear whether infection with Omicron causes more severe disease compared to infections with other variants, including Delta. Preliminary data suggests that there are increasing rates of hospitalization in South Africa, but this may be due to increasing overall numbers of people becoming infected, rather than a result of specific infection with Omicron. There is currently no information to suggest that symptoms associated with Omicron are different from those from other variants. Initial reported infections were among university students—younger individuals who tend to have more mild disease—but understanding the level of severity of the Omicron variant will take days to several weeks. All variants of COVID-19, including the Delta variant that is dominant worldwide, can cause severe disease or death, in particular for the most vulnerable people, and thus prevention is always key.
Effectiveness of vaccines: The UK is working with technical partners to understand the potential impact of this variant on our existing countermeasures, including vaccines. Vaccines remain critical to reducing severe disease and death, including against the dominant circulating variant, Delta. Current vaccines remain effective against severe disease and death and a recent reduction in the time between the second dose and booster has been implemented in the UK to promote and maintain good defense for the immune system.
Effectiveness of current tests: The widely used PCR tests for productions and CCC’s continue to detect infection, including infection with Omicron, as we have seen with other variants as well. Studies are ongoing to determine whether there is any impact on other types of tests, including rapid antigen detection tests but so far all evidence suggests LFT will detect this variant.
Production close contacts and isolation
Self isolating changes (regardless of vaccination status)
Anyone in England who is notified by NHS Test and Trace as being a close contact of a suspected or confirmed case of the Omicron variant will be legally required to self-isolate regardless of age or vaccination status. The responsibility for identifying those infected with the Omicron variant does not lie with productions. It’s laboratories and Test and Trace that do that. On one level it’s ‘business as usual’ in that if someone tests positive, they need to isolate just as now. Their close contacts only need to do so if Test and Trace (or another ‘relevant person’) instructs them to.
However, if one of your cast / crew / contributors does test positive for COVID, you may want to assess on a case by case basis the exposure history and that of the positive case. As a result of the changes to self isolation (for now), it is as important as ever to ensure social distance is applied as much s possible between individuals to reduce the risk of close contact. This should be the default position for shooting, with specific controls in place for any role(s) where close contact cannot be avoided, with face mask / coverings and good ventilation applied for all shoots.
Changes to travel entry conditions - testing and isolation
On arrival in the UK, the mandatory test on or before Day 2 now needs to be PCR (not LFT), booked in advance and (with limited exceptions) people need to isolate until they receive confirmation they have tested negative. Government-approved private labs have been told they need to sequence any samples to assess for Omicron .
Currently, the Film and High End TV Production Activities exemption is still in place in England (for British films for the purposes of Schedule 1 to the Films Act 1985 and television programmes which qualify as a British high-end television programme for the purposes of Part 15A of the Corporation Tax Act 2009). Note that this exemption only applies to the need to quarantine until they get a test result for people who are fully vaccinated. They still need the ≤ Day 2 test and the other rules still apply.