New ‘troublesome’ Omicron variants gaining foothold in US
Because the variants are related to the Omicron variant BA.5, recently updated booster shots should provide some protection
New, more contagious Omicron variants are starting to spread across the US, new government data show.
These variants are related to the Omicron variant BA.5, so recently updated booster shots should provide some protection against the new variants, known as BQ.1 and a descendant called BQ.1.1.
Together, they now make up more than 10% of new infections in the country, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported Friday.
“When you get variants like that, you look at what their rate of increase is as a relative proportion of the variants, and this has a pretty troublesome doubling time,” Dr Anthony Fauci, President Joe Biden’s chief medical adviser, told CBS News.
