My Virtual Reading Room

The real COVID surge is (much) bigger than it looks. But don't panic, from NPR

Dominant coronavirus mutant contains ghost of pandemic past, from AP News

"The coronavirus mutant that is now dominant in the United States is a member of the omicron family but scientists say it spreads faster than its omicron predecessors, is adept at escaping immunity and might possibly cause more serious disease.

Why? Because it combines properties of both omicron and delta, the nation’s dominant variant in the middle of last year. ..."

(in other words, apparently, this is the Deltacron, which was mentioned as a possibility a while back)

In Massachusetts, Omicron Linked With Higher Excess Mortality Than Delta, from Reuters Health

When Will We Know if COVID Is Seasonal?, from MedPage Today

Viruses that were on hiatus during Covid are back — and behaving in unexpected ways, from STAT News