During most of December, Alaska’s COVID-19 cases were trending down, even as the omicron variant was emerging around the world and in the state. Now, omicron seems to now be the dominant variant in the state, and it’s driving a sharp acceleration in cases.
December saw about 8,000 new cases reported through data summary emails from the Alaska Department of Health and Social Services. That’s the least amount of cases reported in a single month since July. But now, cases are trending upward in the state.
“Preliminary laboratory evidence suggests that the omicron variant has become the dominant SARS CoV-2 variant in Alaska and is driving this sharp acceleration in cases that we’re seeing statewide,” McLaughlin said.
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