SOUTH MIAMI, FLA. (WSVN) - New details have been released regarding the omicron variant found in South Florida.
Experts, as well as local and state officials, are encouraging the public to get vaccinated after the new variant was found in Miami-Dade County.
On Friday, private lab CardioPath confirmed the positive case in the county.
Officials said the adult was not vaccinated and was admitted into the hospital for conditions unrelated to COVID-19.
The lab also said the person was asymptomatic.
The lab tested the patient’s samples using next-generation sequencing and discovered the case — the third in the state.
Tampa and St. Lucie County reported the other two cases.
In South Africa, where doctors first detected the variant, it was reported the variant is more transmissible than the delta variant.
“We have about two weeks of data now that shows its doubling time is faster than what we saw with the delta variant or the beta variant,” said South African epidemiologist Salim Abdool Karim.
It’s still unclear if omicron leads to milder disease. Experts said regardless, boosters are critical.
“Preliminary data show that when you get a booster, for example, the third shot of an mRNA, it raises the level of protection high enough that it then does do well against the omicron,” said NIAID Director Dr. Anthony Fauci.
As the new variant emerges, a previous one continues to wreak havoc.
Overall, at least 40 states reported a rise in new cases at some point in the past two weeks all because of delta.
“Certain states like New Hampshire and Massachusetts, where the healthcare systems are beginning to get pressed, and mask mandates are the easiest thing we can do as sort of a collective action that puts some downward pressure on spread,” said former FDA Commissioner Dr. Scott Gottlieb.
According to the CDC, the majority of cases of the omicron variant in the United States have been from people who are fully vaccinated.
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