W.H.O. is watching an Omicron subvariant.

 
...a subvariant that scientists believe is even more contagious is on the rise, and a decline in testing has muddled the global picture, the World Health Organization said.

New cases worldwide dropped 19 percent from Feb. 7 to Feb. 13, compared with the week before, according to the agency.

The W.H.O. also said that the subvariant of Omicron, BA.2 appeared to be “steadily increasing” in prevalence and that BA.2 had now become dominant in several Asian countries, including China, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and the Philippines. Denmark was the first nation to report that BA.2 had overtaken BA.1, the version of Omicron that first swept through the world.

Scientists have said there is no evidence that BA.2 is more lethal than BA.1, though BA.2 could slow Omicron’s decline. Vaccines appear to be just as effective against BA.2 as they are against other forms of Omicron.

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In the Americas, many countries did not move fast enough to slow the transmission of BA.1 [Original Omicron], W.H.O. officials said on Wednesday, and they must be better prepared for whatever version of the coronavirus comes next.

“This will not be the last variant, and the future of the pandemic is still extremely uncertain,” said Dr. Carissa F. Etienne, the director of the W.H.O.’s Pan American Health Organization, adding that “a new variant could emerge at any time.”