omicron variant

The Food and Drug Administration is planning to authorize a new generation of COVID-19 boosters this week that for the first time will target the omicron variant.

The omicron variant has proved adept at finding hosts, often by reinfecting people who recovered from earlier bouts of COVID. But whether omicron triggers long COVID as often and severe as previous variants is a matter of heated study.

Pfizer has submitted data on its bivalent COVID-19 booster shot that specifically targets the latest omicron subvariants. If authorized, the company says the shots could be ready as soon as September.

These undiagnosed infections could be a major factor in the rapid transmission of the omicron variant, the researchers said.

As the country faces a rise in infections driven by the BA.5 subvariant, about 70% of people 50 and older who got a first booster shot haven't received the recommended second one, according to the CDC.

BA.5 is now the dominant omicron strain in the U.S. It's good at evading the immune system, though doesn't appear to cause more serious illness.

Mayor Jane Castor held a virtual discussion with Dr. Charles Lockwood, senior VP with USF Health, on the current status of COVID-19 in Hillsborough County.

You may have a family member, friend or coworker who’s received a positive COVID-19 diagnosis lately because the BA.2 omicron subvariant is really contagious. Doctors aren't telling people to panic about it, but to take care and precautions.

University of Miami researchers have been tracking SARS-CoV-2 variants through genomic sequencing. The effort's leader says: “We are now mirroring the national trends."

The CDC reported that the variant accounted for about 35% of new infections last week.