According to White House adviser Anthony Fauci, COVID-19 infection rates in the United States will likely rise in the coming weeks after a dramatic drop following the omicron variant’s rapid spread.
“I would not be surprised if in the next few weeks we see somewhat of either a flattening of our diminution or maybe even an increase,” Fauci told ABC News’ “Start Here,” ABC News reported.
“Whether or not that is going to lead to another surge, a mini-surge or maybe even a moderate surge, is very unclear because there are a lot of other things that are going on right now,” he added.
The number of new cases has recently fallen sharply across the country, with just over 30,000 being reported on average, The Hill report.
Despite two years of pandemic policies including masking and social distancing, the U.S. has just begun easing restrictions on COVID-19.
CDC officials said that most areas of the United States do not need to require masks indoors, so many states have dropped their mask mandates.
According to Fauci, the United Kingdom’s cases have begun to increase, although “their intensive care bed usage is not going up, which means they’re not seeing a blip up of severe disease,” Fauci added.
In addition to the increase in cases, the BA.2 strain is also seeing an increase in the U.S.
Fauci predicted on the podcast that in the near future the strain will surpass omicron.
