(CNN) -- The BA.2 virus -- a subvariant of the Omicron coronavirus variant -- isn't just spreading faster than its distant cousin, it may also cause more severe disease and appears capable of thwarting some of the key weapons we have against COVID-19, new research suggests.
The CDC is reviewing its mask guidance, shifting its focus to Covid hospitalizations as a key measure of the severity of the outbreak and future guide for determining whether health safety protocols need to be tightened, according to the agency's director, Dr. Rochelle Walensky.
Newly reported COVID-19 deaths are starting to decline in the U.S., driven by drops in the Northeast and Midwest, offering the latest sign that the surge fueled by the highly transmissible Omicron variant is fading.
Mothers who get vaccinated against COVID-19 while pregnant likely protect their babies from hospitalization due to the virus when they are born, according to the CDC.