WHO: Unclear if Omicron is more transmissible

The World Health Organization (WHO) said on Sunday it is still not clear if the new COVID-19 variant dubbed Omicron is more transmissible than previous strains.

“Preliminary data suggests that there are increasing rates of hospitalization in South Africa, but this may be due to increasing overall numbers of people becoming infected, rather than a result of specific infection with Omicron,” the agency stated and also noted that there is “currently no information” that Omicron symptoms differ from those of other variants. However, the WHO stressed that “understanding the level of severity of the Omicron variant will take days to several weeks.”