New COVID Variant Surging In New York Before Holiday, Top Symptom

Thanks to another new variant, COVID cases are surging in New York State. What symptoms should you watch out for?

Millions of New Yorkers are expected to travel or spend time with family and friends during the Fourth of July holiday. However, officials warn COVID cases are on the rise, again.

COVID Cases On The Rise In New York State

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The summer wave of COVID is here. The CDC reports COVID-19 infections are growing or likely growing across almost all of the U.S.

Cases are climbing in at least 38 states, including New York, officials say.

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With people gathering to celebrate the 4th of July and/or staying inside to avoid the heat, health experts believe cases will continue to increase.

New COVID Variant Now Dominant Strain

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Experts believe the increase is thanks to the FLiRT COVID variants, which include all variants starting with KP or JN.

KP.3 and KP.2 variants are now the dominant variants. KP.3 amounts to over 33 percent of all new cases, while over 20 percent of new COVID cases are the KP.2 variant, according to the CDC.

Combined KP.3 and KP.2 account for more than half of all current cases.

CDC

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Most Common Symptom

The most common symptom for FLiRT variants appears to be sore throats, a doctor told Parade.

“Unfortunately one of the most common COVID symptoms currently seems to be a sore throat with or without a mild fever,” infectious disease specialist Dr. Dr. Andreas M. Kogelnik said. “I say unfortunately because a sore throat can be attributed to many different causes.”

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