After weeks in free fall, new Covid-19 cases are starting to level off in the US, as the BA.2 subvariant continues its ascent.
BA.2 caused about 35% of cases in the US last week, up from 22% the week before, according to new estimates from the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which were posted on Tuesday.
At the same time, new Covid-19 cases are holding steady or increasing in about 19 states, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.
Some of the states seeing increases—New York, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Vermont, and New Jersey are in northeastern regions where the CDC estimates that BA.2 is now causing more than half of new Covid-19 cases.
Health officials have warned that overall Covid-19 infections could rise across the US in a few weeks, parallel to trends in the UK and Europe.
What the BA.2 may do in the US remains an open question. The US is going to have a surge, but it’s not going to be a severe surge.