Omicron Now Makes Up 2.9% of Coronavirus Variants Circulating in US – CDC

15:31 GMT, 14 December 2021

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) – The Omicron strain is 2.9% of all circulating coronavirus variants in the United States as of last week, while the Delta variant remains predominant at 96.7%, according to new data published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Tuesday.

Sputnik

The latest ratio of circulating variants shows almost a fivefold increase in the frequency of Omicron in the US over the course of just one week.

At the same time, the new data show that Omicron makes up over 13% in New Jersey and New York as well as Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands.

The United States is experiencing a new surge in COVID-19-related infections, hospitalizations and deaths. On Friday, the CDC said the number of new coronavirus cases was up 37% as compared to last week, and the number of COVID-19-related deaths per week had increased by 28%.

On Monday, California authorities reinstated an indoor mask mandate for all non-exempt individuals through January 15 in order to mitigate the spread of the Omicron variant during the holiday season.