Omicron subvariants driving rise in NY cases

Two new subvariants of the Omicron variant that are estimated to be more contagious have been detected in New York state and have caused rising COVID-19 infections in recent weeks, according to state health officials.

The subvariants, BA.2.12 and BA.2.12.1, appear to spread rapidly, with a growth advantage of about 23 percent to 27 percent over BA.2, which was more contagious than any previous variant and now accounts for more than 80 percent of new infections in the state, the Health Department said in a statement on Wednesday.

The new subvariants don't appear to cause more severe disease than previous variants, the officials said, but they may explain why New York has been the national hot spot for COVID-19 cases in the past few weeks.

The subvariants are spreading particularly fast in the state's central region, where they accounted for more than 70 percent of new cases in March and above 90 percent in April, officials said. In the Finger Lakes region, 20 percent of new cases this month were attributable to BA.2.12 and BA.2.12.1.

"It's just a reminder that we're not out of the woods with regard to this virus," Kirsten St. George, a virologist for the state, told The New York Times.

She said that the new subvariants have been detected in more than 40 other countries and more than 30 states, but New York is the first state to report significant community spread from the newly identified subvariants.

In New York City, the seven-day average of confirmed positive cases stands at 2,069, according to city Health Department data as of Thursday, an increase from the 28-day average of 1,484. However, the alert level citywide is currently "low".

It is still unclear whether the subvariants spread more quickly because they are more contagious or they are able to dodge the body's immune defenses. The Times reported that one of the new subvariants has a mutation that has been shown to help dodge immunity.

Meanwhile, the vaccine partnership between Pfizer and BioNTech said on Thursday that it intends to request authorization from the Food and Drug Administration in the coming days for a booster for children aged 5 to 10.