[Correspondent Diary] The Key After Mask Removal in the US Is Still the 'Stealth Omicron'

[Asia Economy New York=Special Correspondent Joselgina] With the state of Hawaii in the U.S. lifting its indoor mask mandate on the 26th (local time), all states in the U.S. are now going mask-free. Starting with this week's Academy Awards, large-scale indoor events such as concerts and sports games are also returning to normal, as they were before the pandemic.

However, warnings about a possible resurgence of COVID-19 have been pouring in recently. This is because the detection rate of BA.2 (Stealth Omicron), a subvariant of the Omicron variant of COVID-19, is increasing within the U.S.

According to The New York Times (NYT), Hawaii lifted its indoor mask mandate starting on this day. Hawaii was the last of the 50 U.S. states to repeal this regulation. Additionally, Hawaii also ended its Safe Travels program, which allowed travelers to enter without submitting COVID-19 vaccination certificates or test results.

On the streets, people without masks can now be seen more frequently than those wearing them. Each state in the U.S. has eased social distancing measures for indoor multi-use facilities such as restaurants, schools, and sports venues. Representatives of the U.S. aviation industry are currently requesting the White House to lift the mask mandate for airline passengers starting mid-next month.

This move follows the decline in the spread of the Omicron variant. The Washington Post (WP) reported that, based on a 7-day average as of the 26th, the daily average number of COVID-19 cases in the U.S. decreased by 7% compared to the previous week. During the same period, the number of deaths decreased by 31%, and hospitalizations dropped by 13%.

The number of confirmed cases, which had exceeded one million at the beginning of the year due to the Omicron variant spread, has now dropped to around 30,000. The NYT stated, "Although the recent downward trend has slowed, the number of new cases in the U.S. continues to decline," adding that it is "the lowest nationwide level since last July." The daily death toll is also below 1,000, similar to the pre-Omicron spread period. On mask-free streets, there is a mixed sense of relief and hope that the pandemic phase has passed.

However, the key concern is Stealth Omicron. Although the number of COVID-19 cases is decreasing, the spread of Stealth Omicron has been detected mainly in the northeastern U.S. Over the past two weeks, the proportion of Stealth Omicron cases has increased by more than 20% in places such as New York, Connecticut, and Arkansas. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimated that 34.9% of COVID-19 patients in the U.S. between the 13th and 19th of this month were infected with Stealth Omicron. This is particularly concerning as it represents an increase of more than 10 percentage points compared to the previous week (22.3%).

Considering that the trend in the number of cases in the U.S. typically follows the U.K. and the European Union (EU) by about three weeks, warnings suggest that COVID-19 cases in the U.S. could surge significantly as early as next week. Stealth Omicron is considered to be more contagious than Omicron. Local media report that health authorities are closely monitoring the recent spread of COVID-19 variants, considering the possibility of a resurgence this spring.

It is positive that in the U.K., where the spread is severe, the increase in severe cases, intensive care patients, or deaths is not rapid. As Anthony Fauci, director of the U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, assessed, it may be at a level "that can be blocked by vaccines or immunity after infection."

However, as state and federal governments are successively lifting COVID-19 restrictions, the rapid increase of Stealth Omicron should not be taken lightly. There is always the possibility that the new variant could overcome existing immunity. The fact that some U.S. states, including Colorado, have already begun closing COVID-19 testing sites and vaccination centers one by one is also a cause for concern in this context.