ANCHORAGE, Alaska — As new cases reported Friday in Alaska again shattered previous records, state health officials say the latest COVID-19 surge, driven by the highly contagious omicron variant, could peak within just a few weeks, based on trends they’re seeing in other states.
Dr. Joe McLaughlin, Alaska’s chief epidemiologist, said on a recent call with reporters that in places like South Africa, Canada and the U.K., cases peaked recently and have since been trending downward.
Nationally, according to Alaska chief medical officer Dr. Anne Zink, the country is making a “U-turn,” with hard-hit East Coast states trending downward significantly. Alaska tends to follow behind the rest of the United States, she said.
