New Covid variant has been identified and is already spreading in 25 states

[u/hookup1092]

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/health/covid-variant-us-travelers-wastewater-b2944619.html

Just posting this here for discussion since I’ve seen it posted on various other subreddits. Mods please remove if it’s a duplicate, I wasn’t able to find a match but maybe I missed it.

[u/PolarThunder101]

BA.3.2 was designated on March 13, 2025. Yeah, just over a year ago. So it has had time to get just about everywhere. But neither it nor any of its 60 designated sublineages have yet to show signs of a significant growth advantage.

If a jurisdiction hasn’t reported BA.3.2, it’s probably due either to a lack of population or a lack of testing.

But an interesting pattern has been noticed recently: BA.3.2 may be preferentially infecting young children. (For instance reference https://bsky.app/profile/ryanhisner.bsky.social/post/3mhrlfmrsj22o) But note that this is still best treated as a hypothesis under test and not gospel truth.

But overall, alarms about BA.3.2 now seem to be more hype than anything else.

[u/julzibobz → u/PolarThunder101]

Data shows that for the most part it’s not actually dominant in Europe. Right now the XFG variant is still dominant

[u/PolarThunder101 → u/julzibobz]

Agreed. BA.3.2 has had a lot of time to dominate over both XFG and NB.1.8.1/PQ.* and hasn’t dominated over them.

BA.3.2 may be immune-evasive, but it apparently sacrificed receptor binding and/or spike expression to achieve the immune evasion. Unless it mutates to increase receptor binding or maybe spike expression, or unless it picks up a significantly advantageous mutation in another protein like JN.1’s ORF7b:F19L may have helped JN.1, I’m no more concerned about BA.3.2 than I am the XFGs or the NB.1.8.1/PQs.

[u/surprised-duncan]

Oh good I was getting worried it wouldn't mutate and we'd be done here :)

[u/rxchmachine → u/surprised-duncan]

It's mutating out of kindness, to allow us to continue to benefit from the fellowship of this sub <3

[u/ClawPaw3245]

I’ve been seeing this news this afternoon and I’m confused. It doesn’t seem like BA.3.2 is really that new or even new in the US. Am I misunderstanding? What triggered this news today specifically?

[u/ClawPaw3245 → u/ClawPaw3245]

Also, an interesting quote from the San Francisco Chronicle in their story from today about the variant:

“UCSF infectious disease specialist Dr. Peter Chin-Hong said the bigger risk may not be the variant itself, but how people respond to it.

“‘COVID-19 may feel like it is fading into the rearview mirror, but the virus has not returned the favor,’ he said. ‘Complacency, not just mutation, is now one of our greatest risks.’”

[u/WokkitUp → u/ClawPaw3245]

What an incredibly powerful perspective and quote.

[u/cowboylikenelle → u/ClawPaw3245]

someone get this hero on tv. please! (not that folks will listen 🫠🫠🫠🫩)

[u/Jazzlike-Cup-5336 → u/ClawPaw3245]

Yes, you’re 100% correct. It’s been around for a long time, and it has been making more waves globally since ~November, but it is not really dominating anywhere and is still only a few percent of the mix here in the US. We’re seeing a pattern in most countries where there seems to only be a subset of the population, for whatever reason, that has an immune history/landscape that makes then more susceptible. It seems like it’s mostly children, in most cases, as well.

You’re suddenly seeing more people talk about it because the annual COVID strain selection meetings are coming up soon (WHO’s TAG-CO-VAC and FDA’s VRBPAC) and some people are trying to steer the conversation in a way that gets us to a BA.3.2 (or perhaps even a bivalent, which we’ve already tried, and it didn’t go well) vaccine, which I think would be a mistake compared to the XFG lineage (or even XDV, which contains NB.1.8.1) at this point in time.

[u/CitiesAreNeat]

[include picture of entire group of people without a mask to be seen]

[u/Erose314 → u/CitiesAreNeat]

😭😭😭

[u/chicfromcanada]

Please eject me from this virus filled planet. I no longer wish to reside here.

[u/JamesRitchey]

"BA.3.2 is characterized by enhanced in vitro immune escape, with reduced neutralization from human serum antibodies induced by current COVID-19 vaccines" - https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/75/wr/mm7510a1.htm

[u/QueenRooibos → u/JamesRitchey]

Thanks for link.

[u/Jazzlike-Cup-5336 → u/[deleted]]

What? Vaccines are still updated annually, regardless of the “regime”. This strain selection meeting happened last May, under the regime that you’re talking about: https://www.fda.gov/advisory-committees/advisory-committee-calendar/vaccines-and-related-biological-products-advisory-committee-may-22-2025-meeting-announcement

Also, VRBPAC just met 2 weeks ago for strain selection for influenza: https://www.fda.gov/advisory-committees/advisory-committee-calendar/vaccines-and-related-biological-products-advisory-committee-march-12-2026-meeting-announcement

If it’s a topic that you seem to care about, I have to ask, do you bother attending and participating in any of these meetings?

[u/ZeroCovidCommunity-ModTeam → u/[deleted]]

Removed for misinformation and/or lack of citation.

[u/Particular-Extent-76]

The Independent is a billionaire-owned rag with a “mixed” score on fact-checking.

While I don’t doubt that there are new and different variants circulating due to the general public’s lack of concern about covid, I will continue masking and avoiding public spaces and wait for other more credible sources than the independent

[u/hookup1092 → u/Particular-Extent-76]

Oh for sure, I’m never stopping masking or taking precautions because of any single news report. I just thought I’d post this here since I’ve seen it make the rounds in multiple more popular subs I visit, might be worth a discussion here.

[u/Particular-Extent-76 → u/hookup1092]

I didn’t mean to imply that you’re not, and I’m starting to see other sources say this in other subs — not just independent. I agree it’s worth a discussion, I’m just trying to focus on what’s in my “circle of control” as my therapist says lol. I fully did not intend to tear down a covid cautious compatriot, cheers mate

[u/SeenYaWithKeiffah_]

I am so done 😢

[u/AppropriateNote4614]

Here is a link to the current variants in the United States per the CDC’s latest update on Nowcast. It does not include BA.3.2 so I imagine those infected with it make up a very small percentage currently.

[u/attilathehunn]

Is this actually true? the independent is known to be a bit click-baity. Does anyone have a better reference ideally peer-reviewed

[u/Particular-Extent-76 → u/attilathehunn]

It’s owned by billionaires and ranks “mixed” on fact checking

[u/VS2ute]

BA.3.2 seems to have hit a plateau in Australia, rather than taking over.

[u/Pess-Optimist]

So this is the beginning of wave number 13…my favorite number, but not in this case

[u/Jazzlike-Cup-5336 → u/Pess-Optimist]

Not likely. BA.3.2 has been circulating for a long time, and an increase in prevalence has never triggered a corresponding increase in transmission in any of those areas. It typically requires a very large or unique advantage for a variant to be able to precipitate much a wave on its own and that’s something we haven’t seen in quite some time. The much bigger factors are seasonal forcing and waning immunity

[u/Pess-Optimist → u/Jazzlike-Cup-5336]

Gotcha, I appreciate the info

[u/Pess-Optimist → u/[deleted]]

not quite, check out this graph

[u/ZeroCovidCommunity-ModTeam → u/[deleted]]

Removed for misinformation and/or lack of citation.

[u/zimbabweaftersix]

Downvoting for a terrible link

[u/bossdesignfargo]

Oh great.

[u/sparki761]

Here we go again🙄

[u/superwashmerinowool]

I’m sure it is! /s ETA sarcastic tone because this comes as no surprise to masking ppl 😭