When the variant now known as omicron first appeared on a global database of coronavirus genomic sequences, scientists were stunned. Is it more transmissible than the delta variant? Scientists don’t want to get ahead of the facts: No one knows yet how this variant behaves in real-world situations. To be determined,” said Robert F. Garry Jr., a virologist at Tulane University who has scrutinized the mutations in omicron. Public health officials continue to push vaccination, including booster shots, as the best way to prepare for a new coronavirus variant.
