COVID-19 in US: Omicron Subvariant XBB.1.5 Prevalence Jumps to 75%
XBB.1.5 is estimated to account for 74.7 per cent of US' Covid-19 cases, up from 65.9 per cent the week prior. BQ.1.1 remains the second most prevalent strain at 15.3 per cent, Xinhua news agency reported.
Los Angeles, February 11: The highly transmissible Omicron subvariant XBB.1.5 now accounts for about three-fourths of all Covid-19 cases reported in the US this week, according to the estimates released by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
XBB.1.5 is estimated to account for 74.7 per cent of US' Covid-19 cases, up from 65.9 per cent the week prior. BQ.1.1 remains the second most prevalent strain at 15.3 per cent, Xinhua news agency reported. COVID-19 Surge in US: Number of Americans Hospitalized with COVID-19 Rises to 45,279, Highest Since February 2022.
The CDC started tracking XBB.1.5 separately from its parent strain XBB from the week of November 12 last year, when it accounted for only 0.1 per cent of cases nationwide. Since then, XBB.1.5 has been spreading quickly in the US. COVID-19 Surge: US Begins Testing More Travellers As Coronavirus Cases Increase in China.
XBB.1.5 is currently the most transmissible variant in the country. The subvariant may spur more Covid-19 cases based on genetic characteristics and early growth rate estimates, according to the World Health Organisation.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Feb 11, 2023 09:43 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).