Washington
The contagious omicron subvariant BA.2 or “stealth omicron” is currently the dominant version of COVID-19 in the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The CDC released its latest numbers on Tuesday and reports the subvariant accounts for nearly 55% of COVID infection samples that have undergone genetic sequencing.
BA.2 prevalence remains the highest in the Northeast, according to the CDC. And its infection rate has increased significantly since the start of this year -- going from about 1% in January to the current 54.9% reported on March 26.
White House chief medical advisor Dr. Anthony Fauci said earlier this month that BA.2 could cause an uptick in cases, but he didn’t expect another surge in the U.S.
BA.2 has been dubbed “stealth” because it lacks a genetic quirk of the original omicron that allowed health officials to rapidly differentiate it from delta using a certain PCR test. So while the test can detect a BA.2 infection, it looks like a delta infection, as reported by the AP.
The subvariant has been found in more than 80 countries and all 50 U.S. states, but scientists in the United Kingdom found that vaccines provide the same level of protection from both types of omicron, according to the AP.