The new Omicron subvariant XBB.1.16, dubbed “Arcturus”, which has been driving up cases in India, has also been reported across the United States, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has said.
The new variant accounts for 7 per cent of the new cases reported this week, CDS in its weekly bulletin released on Friday said.
This is the first time that CDC has flagged separate Covid cases under XBB.1.16. Previously, all infections were clubbed under the XBB variant.
A more contagious subvariant of COVID-19’s Omicron, BA.2.75 variant nicknamed “Centaurus” has now emerged in The Netherlands, alarming experts who are concerned over the strain’s rapid spread.
According to reports, the variant was found in a sample from the Northeast Gelderland region. The sample was collected on June 26.
It 'has also now been identified in the Netherlands,' the Dutch National Institute of Public Health said in a statement on Wednesday, according to AFP.