New variant, updated vaccine: Coronavirus is back, but it never even left

There’s no indication that the coronavirus’ tenure is ending.

FLiRT is the newest variant that now accounts for the large majority of COVID-19 cases, according to Yale Medicine. Its strains include KP.1.1, KP.2 and KP.3.

Overall reported cases are increasing, too, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The virus has been detected in greater frequency in emergency departments and wastewater.

Dr. Seth Cohen, the Medical Director of Infection Prevention at the University of Washington Medical Center and a UW clinical associate professor, said a variant is the result of the virus’ natural evolution.

He said the coronavirus is “circulating and infecting millions and millions of people around the world, and it acquires changes to the genes.”

If those modifications “become clinically significant, meaning capable of causing severe infection or evading immunity,” it’s considered a “variant of concern.”

Previous variants of concern, including alpha, beta, delta and omicron, have dissipated, though they haven’t fully disappeared.

While Cohen said associated symptoms are similar to variants of the same “omicron lineage,” there are “specific mutations in the spike protein – the part that attached the virus to humans and is responsible for causing infection.”

In Washington, Oregon and Idaho combined, 11,751 COVID tests were administered during the past two weeks. Some 11.6% were positive, which represents a 1.7% increase from the previous week, the CDC reported.

The causes for the increasing infections include “social and biological factors,” the infectious disease specialist said.

A lack of existing immunity to FLiRT is one reason, with summer’s social events also providing an avenue for transmission.

The antidote to this spell of the virus remains the same: vaccination.

Questions circulate regarding whether the available shots would be effective against this new variant.

To address this, the CDC released a statement in late June recommending an updated immunization to protect everyone 6 months or older through the 2024-25 fall and winter.

In the meantime, the current vaccine’s efficacy is not lost. It is still “highly protective against hospitalization and death,” Cohen said.

USA Facts reports that 74.8% of Washington is fully vaccinated, while only 42.1% opted to add a booster. In Idaho, 55.7% of residents are fully vaccinated and 26% received a booster.

Shots are extremely vital for those 65 and older or with weakened immune systems; individuals – if unvaccinated – with those factors should not wait for the release of the new vaccine.

If infected, informing others and staying home is still crucial, especially for some people. That includes older and immunocompromised people, whom Cohen warned “need to be more vigilant,” considering they often face more severe complications.

Ultimately, although it seems research and medicine have tackled many concerns relating to this explosive virus, Cohen thinks the vaccination will see “a new formulation at least every year.”

“We’ve seen a summer wave,” he said. “I think we should continue to expect that in future years, unless something dramatic happens.”