The US on Wednesday (local time) reported its first case of the ‘Omicron’ variant of the COVID-19. The case has been detected in the US state of California, Top Medical Adviser Anthony Fauci was quoted as saying by CNN.
The patient, a resident of San Francisco, is in isolation, and aggressive contact tracing is underway, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said in a statement.
The traveller was fully vaccinated against Covid but did not receive any booster dose. He returned from South Africa on November 22. All his contacts have tested negative. The person tested positive on November 29 and was in self-quarantine.
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Researchers at the University of California, San Francisco obtained a sample from the patient on Tuesday evening and worked feverishly overnight to assemble the genetic sequence.
Fauci and other medical experts strongly emphasized that Americans should continue to get vaccinated and get their booster shots. The vaccine has been proven to reduce the risk of severe illness and death, and Fauci said it is reasonable to believe it will offer protection against the omicron variant.
Meanwhile, the new Omicron coronavirus variant has been confirmed in 23 countries and their number is expected to rise, Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO) Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on Wednesday.
(With inputs from agencies)
