A third of U.S. COVID now caused by Omicron BA.2 as overall cases fall

A third of U.S. COVID now caused by Omicron BA.2 as overall cases fall About one-in-three COVID-19 cases in the United States are now caused by the BA.2 Omicron sub-variant of the coronavirus, according to government data on Tuesday that also showed overall infections still declining from January's record highs. Michael Erman,Bhanvi Satija Reuters

March 22 (Reuters) -  ...Despite the rise of the extremely contagious sub-variant also seen in other countries, U.S. health experts say a major wave of new infections here appears unlikely.

U.S. COVID-19 infections have receded sharply since January, although a resurgence in parts of Asia and Europe have raised concerns that one will follow in the United States given previous patterns during the two years of the pandemic.

In the Northeast, including New Jersey, New York and Massachusetts, Omicron BA.2 now makes up more than half the cases, according to data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

It accounted for 35% of U.S. infections for the week ending March 19, CDC said. That compares with 22.3% for the week ending March 12, which was revised down from 23.1%, according to a CDC model that estimates proportions of circulating variants.

Top U.S. infectious disease official Dr. Anthony Fauci said at a Washington Post event on Tuesday that he does not believe there will be a major surge soon, "unless something changes dramatically."

Still, Fauci noted that cases in the United States generally lag around three weeks behind the United Kingdom, "so if we are going to see an uptick, we should start seeing it within the next week or so."

Daniel Kuritzkes, chief of division of infectious diseases at Boston's Brigham and Women's Hospital, said there was no evidence yet that the rise of BA.2 is pointing to an increase in cases.

"I think the one concern and where people need to remain vigilant is that as we have relaxed many restrictions around masking and gathering, there is a potential opportunity for BA.2 or any variant to gain a foothold," Kuritzkes said. ...