【《We Chinese in America》Media Editor Tang Zhao, June 11, 2022】Domestic confirmed cases of Omicron virus subtype variants BA.4 and BA.5 have risen; two more infectious virus variants have been added to the viruses that prompted the surge in new COVID cases in the spring. (Domestic confirmed cases of Omicron virus subtype variants BA.4 and BA.5 increase, and two more contagious strains of the virus have been added. Image from Getty Images)

Subtype variants accounted for 13 percent of U.S. cases in the week of June 4, according to statistics released this week by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

There is evidence that the BA.4 and BA.5 strains are more infectious than other Omicron virus strains. Public health experts say that the new subtype may evade the immune protection established by other Omicron virus strains in the winter.

"In the next few weeks or months, the BA.4, BA.5 strains could eventually become the main subclade of Omicron," said Nathan Grubaugh, an associate professor of epidemiology at Yale University's School of Public Health.

This is the first time that CDC has released data on BA.4 and BA.5 strains in its weekly variant virus report. The report uses estimates from the past two weeks; the latest report shows that in the first week of May, BA.4, The BA.5 strains together accounted for 1% of cases.

The CDC estimates that BA.4 and BA.5 strains are the highest in Texas, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Arkansas, and Louisiana; the lowest in the Northeast.

At present, the main domestic Omicron variant is still BA.2.12.1. The recent CDC estimates that after several months of steady growth, BA.2.12.1 accounts for about 62%.

Gruber said it is worth observing whether the BA.4 and BA.5 strains will outperform the BA.2.12.1 strain.

According to the CDC report, the recent average daily increase of about 100,000 cases in the United States, epidemiologists believe that the actual number is much higher than the reported data, because most of the health authorities do not track the results of home testing.

This infection wave has not seen a large number of severely ill patients. Although the hospitalization rate has increased, it is still far below the peak of the early epidemic.

Although there are still many people with breakthrough infections, and repeated infections, epidemiologists believe that immunity built up by vaccination and previous infection has strengthened the prevention of severe disease.

(Source: World News Network)

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