First Confirmed Case of the Covid Omicron Variant Has Been Detected in the U.S.

The delta variant of Covid-19 has been the dominant variant for quite awhile in the U.S., but things may be changing in the future. The latest variant, known as the omicron variant, has officially been detected in the state of California.

Omicron was first discovered in South Africa. As a result, the United States has restricted travel from South Africa, but perhaps the travel restrictions started too late.

A California resident traveled from South Africa home to California on November 22. After returning home, the resident tested positive for Covid-19. Within 30 hours of testing positive, it was discovered that the variant of Covid-19 this resident had contracted was the omicron variant. This is the first confirmed case of the omicron variant in the United States.

According to Dr. Fauci, the person with the omicron variant has been fully vaccinated for Covid-19, but to Dr. Fauci’s knowledge, the person has not received a booster shot. The person is reportedly only experiencing mild symptoms at this time and is self-quarantining. People who were in close contact with this person have been notified, and so far, none of them have tested positive for Covid-19.

Experts do not yet known how dangerous the omicron variant is. They have yet to determine how easily it is spread from person to person or how severe the symptoms can be.

 

In a tweet from the Office of the Governor of California, residents were urged to get vaccinated and wear a face mask in order to protect themselves from omicron or any other variant of Covid-19.