Tulane announced yesterday that a case of the Omicron variant of COVID-19 has been identified in a student living off-campus.
The test was administered last week and came back positive over the weekend.
The student has been in isolation since testing positive and all close contacts have been notified.
School officials said with the Omicron variant now reported in multiple states, its appearance within the Tulane community was not unexpected. They said they are confident that following established COVID-19 protocols, including frequent testing, receiving vaccination boosters and social distancing and masking in certain situations as recommended by the CDC, are the best way to protect their school community.
Tulane is currently in a mask-optional status for most of the campus and officials say they will remain as such.
Officials will begin testing 2,500 randomly selected people daily from now until Dec. 17.
Meanwhile Mississippi has reported its first case of the omicron variant, according to the Mississippi State Health Department.
The case is in a fully vaccinated individual who recently traveled to New York.
The patient was not hospitalized.
