Optimism as omicron peaks in California, but new BA.2 subtype raises questions
LOS ANGELES — There is growing optimism that the overall omicron surge has peaked in California, but progress across the state remains uneven.
The improvement is most pronounced in places like Los Angeles County and the San Francisco Bay Area, where health officials have voiced increased confidence in recent days that the coronavirus test positivity rate, as well as daily new coronavirus cases and hospitalizations, have either stabilized or begun to convincingly decline.
“This downward trend is encouraging, and it signals that we’re likely to have passed the peak of omicron transmission and are beginning to see a real decline in the number of newly infected individuals,” L.A. County Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer said.
One potential wrinkle, though, is the emergence of a subtype of omicron.
The World Health Organization has said the appearance of a subtype, called BA.2, is increasing in many countries. A pair of cases have also been found in Santa Clara County, Northern California’s most populous county.
“We don’t really know what that means yet. We’ll be learning that in the days and weeks to come,” said Dr. Sara Cody, the
