XBB.1.5 Variant Takes Over: UK and US Warning
The highly infectious XBB.1.5 Covid variant is spreading fast across the US and UK. In the last week, it made up a whopping 40% of all Covid cases in the United States.
Experts warn it’s a troublesome offshoot of Omicron that can infect even those vaccinated against Covid. In the UK, one in every 25 Covid cases is now linked to the XBB strain.
Experts Raise Alarm Over XBB Variant
“Ironically, the worst variant that the world is currently facing is actually XBB,” said Dr Michael Osterholm, an infectious disease specialist at the University of Minnesota.
He highlighted that seven of the ten US states with rising Covid hospitalisations are in the Northeast — where XBB cases are surging.
Data shows recombinant strains from the BA.2 lineage — including XBB and XBB.1.5 — accounted for 44.1% of US Covid cases during late December. XBB.1.5 alone made up 21.7%.
Fortunately, experts say this variant doesn’t appear to cause worse illness, but its spread is still causing serious concern.
UK Tightens Borders Amid New Variant Fear
The UK government recently demanded that visitors from China produce a negative Covid test before flying to the UK. This move aligns with other countries like the US, Italy, India, and Japan.
The chairman of the House of Commons Health and Social Care Committee defended the decision, though some scientists remain sceptical about the effectiveness of border controls in stopping new variants reaching the UK.
One thing’s clear — XBB.1.5 is the latest Covid headache the world can’t ignore.
