Omicron explained, December 2021

What is it, and why are the reports saying it's less severe misleading?

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At the end of November, 2021, a new COVID-19 variant was discovered in South Africa. Days later, the World Health Organization classified it as a variant of concern, and called it 'Omicron'.

Omicron is more transmissible, spreading significantly faster than the previous variants. It also evades the existing COVID-19 vaccines, making a third vaccine dose now the new vaccination standard.

Reports out of South Africa suggested Omicron causes less severe symptoms than other variants. This is misleading, as South Africa has different demographics and population immunity than many countries in the northern hemisphere. Ultimately, we won't know if Omicron is more severe or not for a few more weeks to months.

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