US sets daily COVID-19 cases record

The United States has set a single-day record of COVID-19 cases, with 441,278 new cases, the Centers for Disease Control and Infection (CDC) informed on Tuesday. This grim mark surpasses the previous high of about 290,000 cases reported on December 20, The Hill reported. The seven-day moving average is now more than 240,000 cases a day, the Washington-based newspaper added.

The latest record comes as the Omicron variant continues to cause a global increase in COVID-19 cases. This new variant has proven to be the most transmissible strain of the novel coronavirus the US has seen since the pandemic began last year. The Omicron variant has accounted for 58.6 per cent of all new infections in the US in the week ending on December 25, according to CDC data.

The overall risk related to the new variant of concern Omicron remains very high, according to the Weekly epidemiological update on COVID-19 which added that early data from the UK, South Africa and Denmark suggests there is a reduced risk of hospitalization. During the week of December 20-26, following a gradual increase since October, the global number of new COVID-19 cases increased by 11 per cent as compared to the previous week.

Omicron was first detected in South Africa last month. South African health authorities, but also health experts from other countries, have said the Omicron variant is much more transmissible but produces mild cases.