COVID-19 deaths among nursing home residents started rising slightly two weeks ago , although still at a rate 10 times less than last year before most residents were vaccinated. But the notion that a generally less severe variant could still take the lives of thousands of people has been difficult for health experts to convey. The wave of deaths heading for the United States will crest in late January or early February, Shea said. “This is omicron driven,” Shea said of the coming wave of deaths. Taking into account the uncertainty in the models, U.S. deaths during the omicron wave could range from 58,000 to 305,000.
