Covid-19’s spread in China might tell us how deadly Omicron really is
Live MintCovid-19’s rapid spread in China has prompted reports of crowded hospitals and inundated crematoria. China is meeting the Omicron variant with less exposure to the virus and lower vaccination rates among the elderly, public-health experts said. Covid-19’s spread there will help explain to what extent lower rates of severe disease and death are influenced by Omicron’s nature compared with a population’s built-up defenses. Tracking Omicron’s impact in China will be a challenge because undercounted deaths could obscure its deadliness and blind residents to the full danger, public-health experts said. Researchers in the U.S. found that among hospitalized patients without prior immunity, the risk of severe outcomes was lower among patients infected with Omicron compared with people infected by Delta.