‘Omicron accounts for 95 per cent of new Covid-19 cases in US’

People take a Covid-19 test at an outdoor testing site in Los Angeles on Tuesday. Pic/AP

The omicron variant accounted for 95% of new coronavirus infections last week, according to US health officials' latest estimates. The Centres for Disease Control and Prevention posted its newest estimates Tuesday. The CDC uses genomic surveillance data to make projections about which versions of the Covid-19 viruses are causing the most new infections.

The latest estimates suggest a dramatic swing - in just one month - in which version of the coronavirus is most abundant. Beginning in late June, the delta variant was the main version causing US infections. The CDC said more than 99.5% of coronaviruses were delta as recently as the end of November.

The CDC's estimates are based on coronavirus specimens collected each week through university and commercial laboratories and state and local health departments. Scientists analyse their genetic sequences to determine which versions of the Covid-19 viruses are most abundant. However, those specimens represent a small fraction of what's out there. More than 2.2 million cases were reported last week in the US. CDC has been revising estimates for few weeks as it gets more data.

Macron berates France's unvaccinated with salty language

Emmanuel Macron. Pic/AP

French President Emmanuel Macron has provoked outcries in parliament and protests from election rivals by using a vulgarity to describe his strategy for pressuring vaccine refusers to get coronavirus jabs. Macron used the French word "emmerder," rooted in the French word for "crap" and meaning to rile or to bug, in an interview published by French newspaper Le Parisien on Tuesday night. He made the explosive remark as lawmakers are heatedly debating new measures that would allow only the vaccinated to enjoy leisure activities such as eating out. "The unvaccinated, I really want to bug them. And so we will continue doing so, to the end. That's the strategy," Le Parisien quoted the French leader in an interview at the Elysee Palace with a panel of its readers. His use of language more commonly heard at French cafés further complicated the already difficult passage in parliament of the government's planned new vaccine pass.

Hong Kong bans flights

Hong Kong authorities announced a two-week ban on flights from the US and seven other countries and held 2,500 passengers on a cruise ship for coronavirus testing Wednesday as the city attempted to stem an emerging omicron outbreak. The two-week ban includes passenger flights from Australia, Canada, France.

‘Multivariant vax booster assuring'

A Covid-19 vaccine booster aimed at tackling multiple coronavirus variants shows promise in inducing a comprehensive immune response, early data suggests. The trials are by US-based Gritstone bio in collaboration with University of Manchester and Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust.

12,76,532
No. of new cases reported globally in the past 24 hours

29,09,59,019
Total no. of cases worldwide

54,46,753
Total no. of deaths worldwide

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