Emerging data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) places the spotlight on remarkable shifts in the incidence rates of COVID-19 variants, with newer strains now accounting for one-third of all cases in the United States. Trends indicate the presence of a new family of variants, termed ‘FLiRTs’, the rise of which seems not to escalate the rates of COVID-19-related hospitalizations and deaths.
The COVID-19 strain, KP2, reigns as the currently dominant variant, contributing to 25% of all reported infections during the week of April 21-27, 2024. The emergence of this variant aligns with the advent of the ‘FLiRT’ family of variants, which owe their moniker to their unique mutations. Within this family, the KP11 variant represents about 7.5% of cases. While these variants surge, the former dominant strain, JN1, now constitutes 22% of US cases.
The naming conventions for these ‘FLiRT’ variants pertain directly to their corresponding mutations, specifically sequences that incorporate the letters ‘F’ and ‘L’, alongside ‘R’ and ‘T’. Amidst the rise of these variants, CDC data also brings a wave of relief, reporting a continuous decline in hospitalizations and deaths associated with COVID-19. For the week of April 21-27, 2024, the newly hospitalized patient count, confirmed with COVID-19, reduced to 727, a noticeable decrease from 819 patients in the previous week. Mortality rates also followed suit, with 184 provisional COVID-19 deaths in the week ending April 27.
This is significantly reduced from 347 deaths in the week ending April 20, and 485 deaths in the week ending April 13. However, CDC emphasizes a forthcoming amendment in data reporting policies. Effective from May 1, 2024, hospitals will no longer be compelled to provide COVID-19 hospital admissions, capacity, or occupancy data to Health and Human Services, via CDC’s National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN). Although this might limit the data’s inclusivity, CDC continues to promote voluntary data reporting from medical institutions.