Is the BA.2.75 COVID variant in Minnesota?
MINNEAPOLIS -- A very contagious COVID-19 variant that health officials say could become a dominant one in the coming months has shown up in Minnesota wastewater tests.
The World Health Organization said BA.2.75 is a concern and warned that new variants are becoming more contagious. BA.2.75 has been the variant behind a number of cases in, among other places, Florida, according to recent reports.
According to the Metropolitan Council, the latest wastewater tested shows that BA.5 remains the dominant variant in the metro area, with some BA.4 and BA.2 remaining.
However, officials said there are BA.2.75 samples in the 1% to 2% range of the overall metro area.
Furthermore, the viral load has increased from the previous week by about 36%.
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