BA.2 Omicron Subvariant , Is Now the Dominant COVID Strain, in the US.
NBC News reports that the BA.2 subvariant of Omicron
is now estimated to account for 54.9% of the
coronavirus variants circulating in the United States. .
Despite a resurgence of COVID-19 cases in Asia and Europe, health experts in the U.S. believe that a rise in infections appears unlikely as overall numbers continue to decline.
NBC News reports that top U.S. infectious disease official
Dr. Anthony Fauci said the increasing dominance of the BA.2 subvariant may lead to a rise in cases but will likely fall short of a major surge. .
As of March 26, the seven-day moving average
of U.S. COVID-19 cases is up about 4% from
a week earlier, rising to 27,895.
However, the number of overall infections is still declining from record highs in January. .
According to a CDC guideline introduced last month,
most people in the U.S. are now considered
to be in low COVID transmission.
The guidelines reportedly emphasized hospital capacity over total case counts. .
According to a CDC model that estimates proportions
of circulating variants, BA.2 made up 39% of
strains in the U.S. for the week ending March 19.
NBC points out that in the past, the CDC has revised its estimates as more data is made available.
NBC points out that in the past, the CDC has revised its estimates as more data is made available