Scientists are warning that the world is vulnerable to a dangerous wave of coronavirus infections after an increase in cases driven by new Omicron variants over the summer.
As workers return from holidays and children go back to school, governments, regulators and vaccine-makers are gearing up for an autumn Covid-19 booster season, tweaking shots to cope with the most prevalent variants and targeting the most vulnerable citizens at the same time as flu immunisation campaigns.
With hospitalisation rates low but rising, experts said Covid-19 cannot yet be treated as a seasonal virus like flu. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warned last week that a new sub-variant, BA. 2.86, may be more able to cause infection in people who have previously had Covid-19 or been vaccinated against it, and urged the vulnerable to wear masks in public places.