\u201cThis is not a surprise; this is always in the cards,\u201d Edwin Michael, PhD<\/a>, an epidemiologist at the University of South Florida College of Public Health<\/a>, tells Fortune<\/em>. \u201cThe mutations will keep happening.\u201d<\/p>\n The omicron variant<\/a> of SARS-CoV-2, the coronavirus that causes COVID-19<\/a>, has been circling the globe for nearly three years. In the U.S., the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) classified it as a \u201cvariant of concern\u201d<\/a> in November 2021. The original omicron strain, B.1.1.529<\/a>, has since mutated into a number of subvariants, from BA.2.74 to XBB.1.16<\/a>. Now a subvariant called KP.2 is the dominant strain nationwide, accounting for 29% of infections during the two-week period ending May 25, per the CDC\u2019s COVID Data Tracker<\/a>.<\/p>\n KP.2, KP.3, and KP.1.1 are among the omicron subvariants in the FLiRT family, which isn\u2019t a cutesy moniker. Rather, it comes from the technical names of a pair of spike protein mutations common to the subvariants, according to the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA)<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cIt seems it is less [infectious] compared to JN.1, but it\u2019s more immune-evasive,\u201d Michael said. \u201cSomething is going on there, which we don\u2019t know exactly.\u201d<\/p>\n So far, the CDC hasn\u2019t identified symptoms specific to FLiRT infection. Keep an eye out for these traditional COVID-19 symptoms<\/a>:\u00a0<\/p>\n Tirachard\u2014Getty Images<\/p>\n<\/div>\n KP.2 is a descendant of JN.1<\/a>, the Omicron subvariant that dominated the U.S. through early spring, and its mutations have been shown to evade vaccine-induced immune protection, the IDSA says.<\/p>\n The 2023\u20132024 COVID-19 vaccines<\/a>, recommended by the CDC last fall, were designed to target the omicron sublineage XBB, which was spreading at the time. New research published in the medical journal the Lancet<\/em><\/a> suggests the vaccine may not be as effective against KP.2.<\/p>\n Even so, Dr. William Schaffner<\/a>, a professor in the division of infectious diseases at Vanderbilt University Medical Center<\/a>, recommends staying up to date with your COVID-19 immunizations.<\/p>\n \u201cOur currently available vaccines still do provide a notable measure of protection against these newer variants,\u201d Schaffner tells Fortune<\/em>. \u201cThis is particularly important for people who are at higher risk of getting more severe disease, should they get infected.\u201d<\/p>\n Along with adults 65 and older, people with the following conditions are at high risk of severe COVID-19 infection<\/a> and may need additional vaccine doses, per the CDC:<\/p>\n The upcoming 2024\u20132025 vaccines<\/a> may be formulated to offer better protection against FLiRT variants. Michael adds that people who\u2019ve already been infected by JN.1 will likely have natural cross-immunity against these variants.<\/p>\n \u201cThat is keeping a check on why we are unlikely to get big waves (of infections),\u201d Michael said.<\/p>\n While each of the FLiRT variants has increased its share of U.S. cases this spring, weekly test positivity percentages<\/a> have steadily decreased since January.<\/p>\n Summertime means traveling and increased gatherings for many, and while there\u2019s no need to panic about FLiRT variants, Schaffner says, continued vigilance about public health practices such as hand-washing and masking around vulnerable people will help keep the virus at bay.<\/p>\n \u201cCOVID, although it has diminished over time, it\u2019s still out there, smoldering,\u201d Schaffner says. \u201cThese newer variants continue to be contagious and they continue to cause illness. COVID does not disappear during the summer the way flu does.\u201d<\/p>\n Michael echoes, \u201cYou will get an upsurge in cases, maybe, but you don\u2019t reach the kinds that we saw last summer or the summer before.\u201d<\/p>\n Nationwide monthly COVID-19 hospitalization rates<\/a> have consistently declined since December, CDC records show, and weekly death rates<\/a> have been diminishing since mid-January. These data point to FLiRT variants causing less severe infection than variants past, Michael says.<\/p>\n \u201cAt this stage, the virus is just trying to persist,\u201d Michael says. \u201cIt doesn\u2019t want to kill people\u2014that would be the end of the virus itself. It\u2019s just trying [to] find a way to keep itself transmitting.\u201d<\/p>\n For more on COVID-19:\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n Subscribe to Well Adjusted, our newsletter full of simple strategies to work smarter and live better, from the Fortune Well team. <\/span>Sign up<\/span><\/a> for free today.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n
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Does the COVID vaccine protect against FLiRT variants?<\/h2>\n
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Will FLiRT variants cause a summer COVID surge?<\/h2>\n