The U.S. saw double-digit decreases in COVID-19 admissions and hospitalizations this week, even as XBB.1.5 grew to account for nearly two-thirds of all infections, according to the CDC's COVID-19 data tracker weekly review published Jan. 27.
Seven updates:
Variants
1. Based on projections for the week ending Jan. 27, the CDC estimates that XBB.1.5 accounts for 61.3 percent of cases, up from 49.5 percent a week prior.
2. BQ.1.1 accounts for 21.8 percent of cases, while BQ.1 accounts for 9.3 percent. Other omicron subvariants make up the rest.
Cases
3. As of Jan. 25, the nation's seven-day case average was 42,163, an 11.3 percent decrease from the previous week's average.
Hospitalizations
4.The seven-day hospitalization average for Jan. 18-24 was 4,216, a 13.9 percent decrease from the previous week's average.
Deaths
5. The current seven-day death average is 537, down 4.9 percent from the previous week's average. Some historical deaths have been excluded from these counts, the CDC said.
Wastewater surveillance
6. About 69 percent of U.S. testing sites are reporting moderate to high virus levels in wastewater, up from 46 percent a week prior.
7. About 40 percent of sites are reporting an increase in virus levels, and 48 percent of sites are seeing a decrease.