"You don't have great protection having been infected with BA.1," said Dr. Warner C. Greene, senior investigator for the Gladstone Institutes.
[Ads /]
Meaning, even if you had COVID you can still get infected with BA.2.12.1.
"It's immunosuppressive. It's acquiring these mutations which make it like a stealth virus. We have our immune system at the ready trying to prevent these infections, but the virus is now learning how to elude the antibodies. It has less success against the T-cells thank goodness," said Dr. Greene.
VIDEO: Here's why some people still get COVID even after being vaccinated and double-boosted
Why some get COVID even after being vaccinated, double-boosted
Vaccines continue to protect against severe disease and hospitalizations, but Dr. Greene believes more people will get reinfected.
"Omicron if its 1 then BA.2 which came around next was 30% more infectious. This new subvariant is 25% yet more infectious," said Dr. Greene.
Nationwide BA.2.12.1 makes up 56% of new COVID cases. In California, according to the latest modeling this subvariant makes up about half of cases.
Prof. Alexandria Boehm with Stanford's Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering is seeing that increase in our wastewater.
VIDEO: Wastewater data shows how fast COVID is spreading across Bay Area
Wastewater samples show how fast COVID is spreading in Bay Area
"The concentrations look like they are doubling every two weeks," said Professor Boehm.
Concentration levels show that BA.1 is almost non-existent. BA.2 which includes BA.2.12.1 has taken over.
"In Yolo County where the concentration in the wastewater right now are almost as high as they were during the omicron surge in Davis. Then Oceanside in San Francisco is always been sort of a centennial plant for us where things happen there first. You can see that the levels at Oceanside in the wastewater are currently twice what they were two weeks ago," said Professor Boehm.
Professor Boehm said they also detected omicron's BA.4 and BA.5 in the Bay Area.
[Ads /]
"BA.4 and BA.5 were other sublineages of omicron that have started to emerge in South Africa that have taken over the BA.2 sublineages. We have detected BA.4 or BA.5 in the water in San Jose," said Professor Boehm.
VACCINE TRACKER: How California is doing, when you can get a coronavirus vaccine
Having trouble loading the tracker above? Click here to open it in a new window.
RELATED STORIES & VIDEOS:
- Which Bay Area airports, public transportation still require masks? List here
- Never had COVID? Expert explains chances of getting it now
- California postpones COVID-19 vaccine mandate for schools until 2023
- Pfizer to seek COVID-19 booster for healthy 5- to 11-year-olds
- New studies shed light on how to treat BA.2 COVID variant, how long it survives on surfaces
- Map shows COVID-19 community levels in your area, where masks are recommended indoors
- Americans can now order another round of free at-home Covid-19 tests
- Coronavirus Timeline: Tracking major moments of COVID-19 pandemic in San Francisco Bay Area
- California drops indoor mask mandate: What to know, what's different in the Bay Area
- Here's how to take a rapid COVID-19 test accurately at home
- Data tracker: Coronavirus cases, deaths, hospitalizations in every Bay Area county
- Get the latest updates on California EDD, stimulus checks, unemployment benefits
[Ads /]