Walgreens: XBB.1.5 is the most common variant in the US

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Walgreens Covid testing confirms that XBB.1.5 is currently the most common variant in the US.

Walgreens have been identifying the different SARS-CoV-2 variants from Covid tests conducted across their stores.

In common with the CDC, Walgreens confirmed that XBB.1.5 was the most common variant in the US at the end of January 2023. The latest variant report from the CDC showed that XBB.1.5 was found in 66.4% of sequences.

 

Walgreens Covid tracker shows XBB.1.5 at 38.14%:

 

The latest CDC report shows that XBB.1.5 is now at 66.4% of sequences in the US:

 

The Walgreens Covid tracker website also shows positivity by vaccination status.

Covid positivity for all age groups is lower in the unvaccinated group than for any vaccinated group, apart from those who were vaccinated within the last three months.

 

Walgreens also showed that the positivity rate – the number of people who tested positive for Covid as a percentage of all tests conducted – was still at a worryingly high level of 33%, and that a new uptick in the positivity rate appears to be in progress.

 

And yep, there’s that rising baseline again. Never mind the wave peaks, look at the troughs.

 

Walgreens Covid tracker website

CDC variant tracker

 

 

Bloom Lab: Why is XBB.1.5 so contagious?

 

** This post was originally published on February 3, 2023 **