PITTSBURGH — A subvariant of omicron is now driving a surge in COVID-19 cases in the United Kingdom, Europe and parts of Asia, but in Western Pennsylvania, health experts don't foresee another dramatic wave of infections.
The subvariant, known as BA.2, isn't new; it first emerged in November and has been circulating in Pennsylvania and the rest of the United States for more than two months. At a time when overall coronavirus cases are declining across the country, the prevalence of BA.2 has doubled over the past two weeks. The subvariant now makes up about 35% of cases nationwide, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Scientists have been keeping an eye on BA.2 because it's even more contagious than the original omicron strain, known as BA.1, which was responsible for record-high case counts, hospitalizations and deaths in early January. The BA.2 subvariant does not seem to cause more severe disease than its parent strain.
