U.S. health officials are watching the steady climb in COVID-19 cases in the U.K., which tends to signal what could happen next in the U.S., according to NPR.
“Over the last year or so, what happens in the U.K. usually happens here a few weeks later,” Anthony Fauci, MD, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, told NPR.Health officials in the U.K. have noted the latest increase is likely due to the contagious BA.2 Omicron subvariant, the recent loosening of coronavirus restrictions and waning immunity from vaccinations and infections.
Public health experts are also pointing to wastewater surveillance data that shows an uptick in viral activity across the country. The CDC’sindicates that about 35% of sites that monitor wastewater are seeing an increase, with consistent growth in Florida, Rhode Island and West Virginia. The wastewater system doesn’t distinguish between Omicron and subvariants such as BA.2. However, otherhas found an increase in BA.2 cases in the U.S., making up about a quarter of new COVID-19 cases.
The good news is that BA.2 “doesn’t seem to evade our vaccines or immunity any more than the prior Omicron [variant]. And it doesn’t seem to lead to any more increased severity of disease,” Rochelle Walensky, MD, the CDC director, toldThe effects of BA.2 will likely depend on the immunity profile in the U.S., including how long it’s been since someone was vaccinated, boosted or recovered from an infection, she said.
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