CDC now tracking BN.1, the latest new COVID variant on the rise
The strain has climbed to make up 4.3% of new COVID-19 cases nationwide.
Alexander Tin is a digital reporter for CBS News based in the Washington, D.C. bureau. He covers the Biden administration's public health agencies, including the federal response to infectious disease outbreaks like COVID-19. Previously, he was a campaign reporter for CBS News based out of Las Vegas, where he was raised. He covered presidential, Senate and House candidates for the 2020 election cycle in Arizona, California, Nevada and New Mexico. He has also worked in Washington for "Face the Nation" and in New York for the "CBS Evening News." Tin graduated from Columbia University in 2017 with a bachelor's degree in political science.
The strain has climbed to make up 4.3% of new COVID-19 cases nationwide.
Recent small studies, not yet peer-reviewed, suggested the new boosters may not be significantly better than the original vaccine formula.
A CDC official called it a "huge priority" for the agency to expand availability of tests for this virus.
The president touted new efforts by companies to get the shots in more arms ahead of an expected surge in new infections.
The agency says the move is only intended to "streamline clinical guidance" for doctors.
The new deaths come as the pace of new infections in the monkeypox outbreak has been largely slowing nationwide.
Boston University says its research with "chimeric recombinant" viruses did not lead to a "gain of function."
The daily pace of new shots administered is once again slowing, following an uptick last month.
The CDC said BQ.1 and one of its descendants, BQ.1.1, represent "a small but fast-growing subset of the Omicron variant."
New findings are the first released from human clinical trials examining the bivalent booster shots that have been rolled out across the country.
The decision by federal health officials expands access to the updated shots for younger children.
The White House defended its decision not to release specific goals for the fall booster rollout.
The CDC issued an alert urging doctors and authorities to immediately screen suspected Ebola cases for their travel history.
The shift comes as federal health officials are bracing for a renewed wave of COVID-19 infections this fall and winter.
Early data, based on people who were eligible for the shots, found the unvaccinated are 14 times more likely to catch monkeypox.