From Fortune:

According to the World Health Organization, nearly 10,000 COVID deaths occurred globally in December. Reported hospitalizations increased by 42%, and ICU admissions by 62%, compared to November. This is after the holiday gatherings and as the JN.1 variant dominates worldwide. The data comes from only a quarter of the world’s countries and is likely underestimated due to low testing.

In the U.S., COVID deaths were up 12.5% week-over-week, and the JN.1 variant dominates, comprising an estimated 62% of cases. JN.1.4—a “child” variant of JN.1—was the No. 3 most commonly reported variant in the U.S. and is responsible for 11% of sequences globally.

Some experts say “Pirola” JN.1 may be the beginning of a new chapter in the pandemic with all dominant variants evolving from it. Already, JN.1.4 contains a mutation that could make it even more immune evasive.



Read more: Highly mutated COVID variant ‘Pirola’ JN.1 is spawning. Its descendants are climbing the charts, as the global death toll mounts