COVID-19 omicron variant is spreading quickly. Here’s what we know.
South African scientists identified a new COVID-19 variant which has now been reported in Belgium, Botswana, Hong Kong and Israel.
Just the FAQs, USA TODAY
CEOs at two pharmaceutical giants whose double-shot COVID-19 vaccines are dominating the U.S. market are pitching different perspectives on the impact of the omicron variant.
Moderna CEO Stéphane Bancel said current vaccines for COVID-19 will likely be less effective against the new omicron variant. Bancel told the Financial Times in an interview published Tuesday that he has spoken to scientists who told him that omicron is “not going to be good.” He said it could be months before enough vaccines can be produced to crush omicron.
BioNTech CEO Ugur Sahin, however, told the Wall Street Journal that the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine is effective against severe illness from COVID-19 and would likely continue to be effective against the omicron variant.
“Our message is: Don’t freak out, the plan remains the same. Speed up the administration of a third booster shot,” Sahin said.
Also in the news:
►Pfizer has submitted a request to the FDA to expand the emergency use authorization of its adult COVID-19 booster dose to include 16- and 17-year-olds. “It is our hope to provide strong protection for as many people as possible, particularly in light of the new variant,” CEO Albert Bourla said on Twitter.
►226 omicron cases have been confirmed in at least 21 countries, including Britain, 11 European Union nations, Australia, Japan, Brazil, Canada and Israel.
►Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James was placed in NBA’s COVID-19 health and safety protocols and could miss several games. It was not known whether James tested positive.
📈Today’s numbers: The U.S. has recorded more than 48 million confirmed COVID-19 cases and more than 780,000 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University data. Global totals: More than 262.9 million cases and 5.2 million deaths. Nearly 197 million Americans – roughly 59.4% of the population – are fully vaccinated, according to the CDC.
📘What we’re reading: Are travel bans worth it? They could slow the spread of omicron but they have repercussions, experts say.
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To combat the spread of the new omicron COVID-19 variant, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is tightening testing requirements for international travelers. Currently, air travelers to the United States who haven’t recently recovered from the virus – including U.S. citizens – must have a negative viral test before boarding their flight. Fully vaccinated travelers are required to take tests no more than three days before departure. But the CDC says it is “working to modify” the global testing order to give all international air travelers just one day to take a pre-departure test.
“This strengthens already robust protocols in place for international travel,” the CDC said in a statement. The U.S. is also working to stem the spread of the virus with new travel bans against eight countries that went into effect Monday. The omicron variant has not yet been detected in the U.S.
As the new omicron coronavirus variant spreads across the world, advocates of more widespread vaccinations are having an “I told you so” moment. For a year since COVID-19 vaccines first became available, a small but vocal group has warned about the need to protect the most vulnerable around the world. People in richer countries will not be safe, even if fully vaccinated, until those in poorer nations – which make up more than half the world’s 8 billion population – also have the benefit of vaccines, they’ve argued.
“The emergence of the omicron variant has fulfilled, in a precise way, the predictions of the scientists who warned that the elevated transmission of the virus in areas with limited access to vaccine would speed its evolution,” Dr. Richard Hatchett, told a special session of the World Health Assembly this week. Read more here.
– Karen Weintraub
Marcus Lamb, CEO of the evangelical Christian-based Daystar Television Network who advocated against vaccines, has died following a bout with COVID-19.
“It’s with a heavy heart we announce that Marcus Lamb, president and founder of Daystar Television Network, went home to be with the Lord this morning,” the network tweeted Tuesday. “The family asks that their privacy be respected as they grieve this difficult loss. Please continue to lift them up in prayer.”
Lamb’s wife, Joni, said last week her husband was trying alternative treatments without success. Lamb’s son, Jonathan, had described his father’s illness as “spiritual attack from the enemy” because of his advocacy against vaccines and support for alternate treatments.
Officials from Rochester Regional Health and the University of Rochester Medical Center in New York state have joined a growing list of hospitals across the U.S. and around the world warning that their facilities had reached full capacity and that emergency departments are stressed. In the Rochester area, hospital leaders said they were weighing whether they could continue performing elective procedures and surgeries. Dr. Michael Apostolakos, Chief Medical Officer for Strong Memorial and Highland Hospitals, said the majority of the COVID-19 patients requiring hospitalization were unvaccinated.
“A significant number of people are refusing the vaccines, and our community is paying the price,” Apostolakos said. “Cases are continuing to rise with no end in sight.
– Sean Lahman, Rochester Democrat and Chronicle
The omicron coronavirus variant could have a moderate impact on the U.S. economy next year as it hurts consumer spending and worsens labor shortages and supply chain bottlenecks, intensifying already-high inflation, top economists say.
It’s too early to pinpoint how omicron will affect economic growth because scientists are just starting to assess the toll it could take on global health. But under one likely middle-ground scenario laid out by some top economists, the strain could be more infectious but not significantly more virulent than the delta variant. And it could lead to fewer government-imposed restrictions on businesses.
If that’s the case, omicron or another similar variant would cut economic growth next year by half a percentage point to 4.3% and lead to the creation of several hundred thousand fewer jobs, estimates Mark Zandi, chief economist of Moody’s Analytics.
That would be less than Moody’s projected growth of 5.5% this year – highest since the early 1980s – but still a historically strong figure as the nation continues to dig itself out of the pandemic-induced downturn.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average tumbled 905 points, or 2.5%, on Friday, largely on worries over omicron, but it closed up 236 points Monday before sliding again in mid-morning trading Tuesday.
– Paul Davidson, USA TODAY
Contributing: The Associated Press