KDHE monitoring variant

The Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE) is continuing to monitor the COVID-19 variant Omicron. No confirmed cases have been identified in Kansas or the United States to date. This variant is new, and it is still unknown how transmissible or contagious this variant is. It is unclear how quickly it will spread, but it has been found in 17 countries already and we should assume that it is only a matter of time before it will be found in the United States. KDHE will continue to sequence positive COVID-19 samples to look for the Omicron variant. With over 64% of the eligible population fully vaccinated, Kansas is more prepared for Omicron than previous variants.