And then there’s this observation about the timing of the emergence of this variant: Kristian Andersen, an infectious disease researcher, estimates the virus emerged sometime way back in late September or early October, which suggests it is spreading very slowly. McClatchy reported late Wednesday that “Even before omicron was first detected in South Africa, state and local labs were collecting the genetic sequences of 15,000 to 20,000 diagnostic tests each week, allowing scientists to keep track of what COVID-19 variants were circulating in communities across the country. Thousands more are collected by private labs and academic institutions.” So omicron may...
