It has been a year after the outbreak, and people’s lives and relationships have been forever changed. A new normal has been established throughout the world, but another lockdown may be necessary when new cases emerge.
COVID-19 was detected in a small number of attendees at the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner on Saturday night.
According to a tweet, VOA’s top national correspondent, Steve Herman, tested positive for the drug. According to the New York Times, ABC News chief Washington reporter Jonathan Karl has been infected. The head of the gala, Steven Portnoy of CBS Radio, says the number of cases connected to the event presently stands at just a few dozen.
Update: Feeling increasingly achy today (less than 72 hours after #WHCD2022) so just self-administered a #COVID19 antigen rapid test. https://t.co/YneTnPi7hY pic.twitter.com/vNFecyzGMW
— Steve Herman (@W7VOA) May 3, 2022
Attendees at the meal were required to produce evidence of vaccination and a same-day negative test because of worries that the gathering would spread the disease. The Washington Hilton’s ballroom held 2,600 guests for the occasion. In the wake of the epidemic, a beloved Washington institution had to take a two-year halt.
Omicron variations BA.2 and two additional subvariants, which appear to be much more infectious, continue to drive COVID outbreaks across the United States. Health officials in New York have highlighted two of them, BA.2.12 and BA.2.12.1.
According to a New York Times tracker, the number of cases in the United States is now averaging 62,428 a day, up 50% from two weeks ago. Since many people are currently testing and treating themselves at home and the data is not being collected, the actual count is expected to be much higher. Since two weeks ago, the number of cases has increased in all but four states and territories.
The number of Americans being admitted to hospitals each day has increased by 18% since two weeks ago, although it is still below the number seen in the early days of the pandemic. An official tally of more than a million deaths is likely in the next several weeks, although the daily death toll has dipped below 400.
In South Africa, two novel subvariants of the omicron coronavirus that causes COVID-19 are causing an increase in cases. Still, there isn’t enough data yet to tell if they are more dangerous than previous variations of the coronavirus.
The BA.4 and BA.5 strains “have gained a few more alterations that may affect their features,” according to the agency’s weekly epidemiological bulletin.
There isn’t enough information to suggest an increase in hospitalizations or any other indication of higher severity.
