COVID-19 - NEW YORK. COVID-19 cases surged in New York City and around the United States over the weekend, dashing hopes for a more normal holiday season, resurrecting restrictions and stretching the country's testing infrastructure ahead of holiday travel and gatherings.
The spike is alarming public health officials, who fear an explosion of infections after the Christmas and New Year's holidays.
The fast-spreading new Omicron variant of the coronavirus has become dominant in the United States with lightning speed. The variant now accounts for 73% of U.S. coronavirus infections based on sequencing data for the week ended Dec. 18, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said on Monday.
With the new variant in circulation, COVID-19 cases are now doubling in one and a half to three days in areas with community transmission, the World Health Organization said on Saturday.
Lines for COVID-19 tests wrapped around the block in New York, Washington, D.C., and other U.S. cities over the weekend as people clamored to find out if they were infected before celebrating the holidays with family.
"I just want to make sure before seeing my wife's 70-year-old mom that I'm negative," said David Jochnowitz while waiting for a test in Washington.
Read Also: Gold stalls in choppy trading as investors weigh Omicron impact
With a rapid rise in infections, Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser on Monday reinstated an indoor mask mandate until the end of January and required government workers to get vaccinated, including a booster shot.
"I think we're all tired of it," Bowser told reporters. "I'm tired of it too, but we have to respond to what's happening in our city and what's happening in our nation."
In New York City, COVID-19 cases rose 60% in the week that ended on Sunday as the Omicron variant spread rapidly around the U.S. northeast. New York has set records for the most new cases reported in a single day since the pandemic started for three consecutive days.
"It is a predictor of what the rest of the country will see soon, and the minimum - since NYC is highly vaccinated - of what other parts of the country will experience in under-vaccinated cities and states," said Georges Benjamin, executive director for American Public Health Association.
Many Broadway productions canceled performances as cast and crew have become infected. The popular "Hamilton" production on Monday extended cancellations until after Christmas due to breakthrough COVID-19 infections.
Breakthrough infections are rising among the 61% of the country's fully vaccinated population, including the 30% who have gotten booster shots.
Omicron appears to be causing milder symptoms in vaccinated populations, and health experts remain optimistic this wave might not cause the same spikes in hospitalizations and deaths as previous surges.
