In New York and New Jersey, it was also found that the corona 19-micron sub-variant ‘BA.5’ was established as the dominant species. Due to immunity evasion and strong transmission power, the possibility of a COVID-19 resurgence this summer is at an emergency.
According to the Federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), BA. This is a marked increase from the 52% from June 26 to July 2 a week ago.
BA.5 is a sub-mutation of the Omicron mutation that led the COVID-19 pandemic earlier this year. However, it is highly contagious enough to be called the worst version of Omicron. It is known that the transmission power of BA.5 is 50% stronger than that of Omicron mutation, and there is concern about re-infection because it has the property of well avoiding the immunity acquired after vaccination or natural infection.
According to a recent Columbia University study, the BA.5 mutation is 4.2 times more resistant to vaccine than the previous mutation.
According to the New York State Government, the risk of reinfection is increasing in New York State overall, but Long Island has the highest reinfection rate at 7.3 per 100,000 people.
New York City ranked second with 6.9 per 100,000 residents. Moreover, New York City has a new incidence rate of 41 per 100,000, higher than Long Island, and all five New York City boroughs are designated as high-risk areas by the CDC.
New Jersey is also rapidly spreading since the BA.5 mutation was first discovered on May 28.
The New Jersey state government announced on the 13th that 1,013 COVID-19-related hospitalizations across the state were the highest since February 20.
The CDC has assigned a high risk of COVID-19 to six counties in New Jersey: Morris, Burlington, Camden, Atlantic, Cape May and Manmouth.