Two years and four waves into the COVID-19 pandemic, it’s starting to feel like déjà vu all over again.
A new subvariant of omicron, called BA.2, is driving most new COVID-19 infections around the world and now accounts for about 1 in 3 cases in the United States and more than half in certain regions, according to surveillance data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
CDC data show that in the Southeast, including Florida, BA.2 made up about 1 in 5 cases where virus samples were sequenced during the week ending March 19, the most recent period available. Elsewhere, including the New England region, the omicron subvariant makes up more than half of all cases.
However, there has been no corresponding spike in cases, and COVID-related deaths have dropped nationally to their lowest point since late November, prior to the omicron surge.
In Miami-Dade, a team of University of Miami researchers has been tracking variants through genomic sequencing of samples taken from COVID-positive patients at UHealth Tower, Jackson Memorial Hospital and students and staff on UM’s campuses.
Read more from our news partners at the Miami Herald.
Copyright 2022 WLRN 91.3 FM. To see more, visit WLRN 91.3 FM.
