Thread by @BuzzFeedNews

The Omicron variant has dramatically redefined how bad a COVID surge can be, even when vaccines are readily available.

Here’s everything we know about what might happen next. buzzfeednews.com/article/danver…

The CDC’s assembly of forecasts for COVID cases project the US peak coming nationwide in the next two weeks, heading up to 800,000 new cases a day before a sharp decline. buzzfeednews.com/article/danver…

The post-Omicron pandemic may look different everywhere, both around the globe and across the country. buzzfeednews.com/article/danver…

But among scientists, there is wide agreement that Omicron has been a landmark variant.

“It shows that this virus is more flexible than most of us had expected. That’s worrisome.” immunologist Shane Crotty said. buzzfeednews.com/article/danver…

The fact that the virus could change so much and remain infectious forces scientists to consider a wider field of possibilities for future mutations of the virus. buzzfeednews.com/article/danver…

Do Omicron’s milder effects mean future variants will be less severe?

Scientists are still trying to untangle whether Omicron truly causes milder disease, or whether it just seems milder because more vaccinated people are getting sick. buzzfeednews.com/article/danver…

Will humanity have heightened immunity after Omicron?

Whether the next widespread variant is more or less dangerous than Omicron is just a matter of chance. The threat of a more deadly and more transmissible variant arising is more than just theoretical. buzzfeednews.com/article/danver…

The really big remaining need after Omicron is to vaccinate the globe.

“We saw the last couple variants emerge from largely unvaccinated populations.” infectious disease expert Andrea Ciaranello said.
buzzfeednews.com/article/danver…

In the long run, the combination of global vaccination and whatever immunity comes from infections should at some point result in a final wave of the pandemic. buzzfeednews.com/article/danver…