Here we go once more: COVID-19 hospital admissions have inched upward within the United States since early July in a small-scale echo of the three earlier summers.

With an up to date vaccine nonetheless months away, this summer season bump in new hospitalizations is perhaps regarding, however the variety of sufferers is way decrease than earlier than. A have a look at what we all know:

HOW BAD IS THE SPIKE?

For the week ending July 29, COVID-19 hospital admissions had been at 9,056. That’s a rise of about 12% from the earlier week.

But it’s a far cry from previous peaks, just like the 44,000 weekly hospital admissions in early January, the practically 45,000 in late July 2022, or the 150,000 admissions through the omicron surge of January 2022.

“It is ticking up a little bit, but it’s not something that we need to raise any alarm bells over,” stated Dr. David Dowdy, an infectious illness epidemiologist at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

It’s possible that infections are rising too, however the information is scant. Federal authorities ended the general public well being emergency in May, so the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and plenty of states not observe the variety of optimistic take a look at outcomes.

WHAT ABOUT DEATHS?

Since early June, about 500 to 600 folks have died every week. The variety of deaths seems to be secure this summer season, though previous will increase in deaths have lagged behind hospitalizations.

HOW ARE WE TRACKING THE VIRUS?

The quantity of the COVID-19 virus in sewage water has been rising since late June throughout the nation. In the approaching weeks, well being officers say they’ll preserve a detailed eye on wastewater ranges as folks return from summer season journey and college students return to highschool.

Higher ranges of COVID-19 in wastewater concentrations are being discovered within the Northeast and South, stated Cristin Young, an epidemiologist at Biobot Analytics, the CDC’s wastewater surveillance contractor.

“It’s important to remember right now the concentrations are still fairly low,” Young stated, including it’s about 2.5 occasions decrease than final summer season.

And whereas one model of omicron - EG.5 - is showing extra incessantly, no explicit variant of the virus is dominant. The variant has been dubbed “eris” nevertheless it’s an unofficial nickname and scientists aren’t utilizing it.

“There are a couple that we’re watching, but we’re not seeing anything like delta or omicron,” Young stated, referencing variants that fueled earlier surges.

And mutations within the virus don’t essentially make it extra harmful.

“Just because we have a new subvariant doesn’t mean that we are destined to have an increase in bad outcomes,” Dowdy stated.

WHEN IS THE NEW VACCINE COMING?

This fall, officers count on to see up to date COVID-19 vaccines that include one model of the omicron pressure, referred to as XBB.1.5. It’s an vital change from immediately’s mixture photographs, which combine the unique coronavirus pressure with final yr’s commonest omicron variants.

It’s not clear precisely when folks can begin rolling up their sleeves for what officers hope is an annual fall COVID-19 shot. Pfizer, Moderna and smaller producer Novavax all are brewing doses of the XBB replace however the Food and Drug Administration should log out on every, and the CDC should then situation suggestions for his or her use.

Dr. Mandy Cohen, the brand new CDC director, stated she expects folks will get their COVID-19 photographs the place they get their flu photographs - at pharmacies and at work - quite than at devoted places that had been arrange early within the pandemic as a part of the emergency response.

“This is going to be our first fall and winter season coming out of the public health emergency, and I think we are all recognizing that we are living with COVID, flu, and RSV,” Cohen instructed The Associated Press final week. “But the good news is we have more tools than ever before.”

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AP Medical Writers Lauran Neergaard and Mike Stobbe contributed to this report.

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The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives assist from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Science and Educational Media Group. The AP is solely answerable for all content material.

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