As BA.5 Spreads, Is Now the Time for a Second COVID-19 Booster Shot?
The new and highly transmissible BA.5 subvariant of omicron has become the dominant strain of the coronavirus in the United States, accounting for just over 80 percent of all new cases as of July 26, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).The mutation is driving a recent surge in COVID-19 cases. Tracking by The New York Times on July 25 shows the average number of infections in the United States rose by an average of 10 percent over the previous two weeks, while hospitalizations climbed by 12 percent and new deaths jumped by 34 percent.A study published June 17 in the journal Nature found that BA.5 and its sister subvariant, BA.4, not only exhibit higher transmissibility than previous omicron versions, but are also better able to evade protections from…