Top Things You Need To Know About The Omicron Variant

1. New variants of the virus are expected to occur. Taking measures to reduce the spread of infection, including getting a COVID-19 vaccine, is the best way to slow the emergence of new variants.

2. Vaccines reduce your risk of severe illness, hospitalization, and death from COVID-19.

3. All COVID-19 tests can detect known variants, but they will not tell you which variant you have.

World Health Organization Information

Background: https://www.who.int/news/item/26-11-2021-classification-of-omicron-(b.1.1.529)-sars-cov-2-variant-of-concern

• This variant has a large number of mutations, some of which are concerning. Preliminary evidence suggests an increased risk of reinfection with this variant, as compared to other Variants of Concern (VOC).

Center for Disease Control Omicron Variant Resources

• Press Release: https://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2021/s1126-B11-529-omicron.html

• Variant Information Page: https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/variants/variant.html