A new COVID variant is gaining strength, wastewater samples from across the U.S. show

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Wastewater samples throughout the nation discover that the virus that causes COVID is plentiful as a brand new variant gathers power. Therapies and vaccines nonetheless work towards the brand new variant.

SCOTT SIMON, HOST:

The U.S. is in full-on respiratory virus season. Many of the nation is experiencing excessive or very excessive respiratory virus ranges, in response to the facilities for Illness Management and Prevention. NPR well being correspondent Pien Huang joins us. Pien, thanks a lot for being with us.

PIEN HUANG, BYLINE: Thanks for having me.

SIMON: (Imitating coughing) Excuse me. What’s on the market?

HUANG: Properly, there’s a lot – quite a lot of virus on the market, Scott. We’re, as you talked about, within the thick of winter respiratory virus season. So there’s RSV. There’s flu. There’s COVID. There’s frequent chilly viruses. They usually all get a lift throughout the holidays when individuals journey and collect. I talked to Amy Kirby, who runs the Nationwide Wastewater Surveillance program at CDC, and she or he says, in case you take a look at the wastewater information, COVID ranges proper now are even larger than they had been final season. However nonetheless, she says…

AMY KIRBY: We’re nonetheless very far under the degrees that we had been seeing in 2022 with the omicron peak. So we’re not that sort of, you already know, actually huge wave of infections. That is far more on par with what we noticed final yr.

HUANG: And though the extent of COVID is larger than it was final yr at the moment, different COVID metrics, like ER visits and hospitalization charges, these are decrease this yr, the CDC says.

SIMON: Does that imply we’re altering what I will consult with as our relationship with COVID?

HUANG: In some senses, sure. I imply, what it means proper now could be that COVID infections are inflicting critical illness much less typically than they did in earlier years. However COVID nonetheless is probably the most critical virus proper now. Final week, as an example, it put 35,000 new individuals within the hospital. No less than 1,200 individuals died from it. And that’s much more than flu. To this point this season, hospital capability has been typically steady, which is nice information as a result of that implies that individuals who want care can typically get it.

SIMON: What concerning the new COVID variants although?

HUANG: OK. So the dominant variant proper now could be one referred to as JN.1 Right here within the U.S., it was first detected in September, and by Thanksgiving it was answerable for round 8% of U.S. circumstances. Now it is as much as 60%. And JN.1 is taken into account an omicron variant, although there’s been some debate over whether or not it deserves its personal Greek letter because it has quite a lot of genetic variations. However the signs are about the identical. And the assessments, the vaccines and the therapies that we presently have do work towards it.

SIMON: What ought to individuals be doing now, given all of this?

HUANG: Properly, public well being officers are actually leaning into encouraging individuals to make use of the instruments we’ve got. In order that begins with consciousness. , there are maps that the CDC and native well being departments are placing out that may assist individuals determine how a lot virus is circulating the place they reside, and it is not too late to get vaccinated. , half of us adults haven’t gotten a flu shot this season. 4 out of 5 have not gotten the COVID booster. And that is particularly essential for older adults who’re at larger danger of dying from these diseases. And lastly, if you’re sick, like lots of people are proper now, the recommendation is to remain dwelling so you do not unfold it on. Get examined in case you qualify for some prescription medicines that may assist you to get higher, and to typically simply take excellent care of your self and the individuals round you’re.

SIMON: Thanks very a lot. NPR well being correspondent Pien Huang.

HUANG: You are welcome, Scott.

NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by an NPR contractor. This textual content will not be in its last kind and could also be up to date or revised sooner or later. Accuracy and availability could fluctuate. The authoritative document of NPR’s programming is the audio document.

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