NEW YORK: US government figures show that the omicron variant continues to account for a growing proportion of new coronavirus infections in the country.
Omicron accounted for 59 per cent of new cases in the U.S. for the week ending Dec.25, according to updated data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
That's up from 23 per cent the previous week.
The CDC had said last week that omicron already accounted for a majority of new cases in the country.
But the agency said Tuesday it significantly lowered that previous estimate based on additional data it collected.
Still, it noted that omicron is accounting for a growing proportion of cases.
The rapid spread comes after the first confirmed case of omicron in the U.S. was identified earlier this month.
Studies have provided early hints that it is milder than the delta variant.
California became the first state to record more than 5 million known coronavirus infections, according to the state dashboard on Tuesday, which was delayed by the holiday weekend.
The grim milestone, as reported by the California Department of Public Health, wasn't entirely unexpected in a state with 40 million residents poised for a surge in new infections amid holiday parties and family gatherings forced indoors by a series of winter storms.
The first coronavirus case in California was confirmed Jan.25, 2020.
It took 292 days to get to 1 million infections on Nov.11 of that year, and 44 days from then to top 2 million.
California's caseload is also ahead of other large states.
Texas had more than 4.4 million and Florida topped 3.9 million as of Sunday.
California has recorded more than 75,500 deaths related to COVID-19.
The state has fared far better than many other states that are dealing with a coronavirus surge, with areas in the Midwest and Northeast seeing the biggest jump in cases and hospitalizations amid frigid temperatures that have kept people indoors.
The US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention lists California as a place with high transmission of the virus, along with nearly everywhere else in the country.
But in the last week California averaged 16.4 new cases per 100,000 people, less than a third of the national rate.
Meanwhile, coronavirus related hospitalizations have been rising slowly in California, up about 12 per cent in the last seven days to 4,401.
That's less than half as many as during the late summer peak and one-fifth of a year ago, before vaccines were widely available.
The timeline of COVID-19 in America often comes back to California.
It had some of the earliest known cases among travellers from China, where the outbreak began.
The February 6, 2020, death of a San Jose woman was the first known coronavirus fatality in the US.
That same month, California recorded the first US case not related to travel and the first infection spread within the community.
On March 19, 2020, Gov. Gavin Newsom issued the nation's first statewide stay-at-home order, shuttering businesses and schools to try to prevent hospital overcrowding.
It is unclear how many of the newly reported cases were attributed to the omicron coronavirus variant.
Much about omicron remains unknown, including whether it causes more or less severe illness.
Scientists say omicron spreads even easier than other coronavirus strains, including delta, and it is expected to become dominant in the US by early next year.
Early studies suggest the vaccinated will need a booster shot for the best chance at preventing an omicron infection but even without the extra dose, vaccination still should offer strong protection against severe illness and death.
Omicron scenes from Europe, Australia
Spain is dealing with the highest ever number of coronavirus infections, with some regions considering further curbs on social life ahead of the end of the year.
Updating pandemic figures for the first time in four days, health authorities reported 214,619 new cases late on Monday, bringing the 14-day national caseload to a pandemic record level of 1,206 new infections per 100,000 residents.
At the height of the January surge, which until now was the one that infected most people in Spain, the rate had surged to 900.
The explosive spike is largely blamed on the omicron variant, which scientists say spreads faster than previous strains although the number of infected patients who need hospital care is proportionally less than in previous surges.
Official data shows that 7.5% of Spanish hospital beds and 18% of intensive care units are treating COVID-19 patients.
Authorities reported 120 new deaths since Dec.23.
In response to the soaring caseload, some Spanish regions are now considering restrictions they resisted only a week ago, when authorities only imposed mandatory mask wearing outdoors.
The northern regions of Navarra, Aragon and Cantabria, among others, are now limiting nightlife, imposing curfews or considering caps on members of different households allowed to gather together.
Australia's Victoria and Queensland states reported record levels of new daily coronavirus infections on Tuesday as pressure on testing centers prompted calls for wider use of rapid antigen tests.
Queensland state reported 1,158 cases, the first time the state has seen more than 1,000 cases in a day, but hospitalisations remained low.
The state has more than 4,000 active cases of which 257 are reported to be the omicron variant.
State Health Minister Yvette D'Ath announced Tuesday that travelers from out of state no longer will have to have a PCR test five days after arrival.
D'Ath said of the tens of thousands who had crossed the state's borders recently, only 0.6 percent had tested positive on day five.
"Anyone who is waiting in lines now for the day five test will not be required to get day five tests from now," she said.
"We thank everyone for doing the right thing. We have made sure we've done this in a safe and responsible way but from now, that no longer applies."
Victoria state reported 2,738 new cases Tuesday, beating the previous state record of 2,297 cases in mid-October.
Australia's most-populous state, New South Wales, saw a slight fall in case numbers but that corresponded with fewer tests around Christmas Day.
The state reported 6,062 new infections Tuesday, down from 6,324 a day earlier.
New South Wales Heath Minister Brad Hazzard said the requirement for travelers to Queensland to have a negative PCR test 72 hours before departure was putting unnecessary strain on testing facilities.
He said in enforcing the requirement, Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk was "perverting the purposes of pathology testing."
"If Queensland thinks people are arriving free of COVID, that's not necessarily true," Hazzard said.
"These tests have been done three or four days before arriving. It's counterproductive."
"This rule is contributing to the breakdown of the biggest pathology system in the country. We are not getting the turnaround times we need."
Long lines were reported at testing centers around Sydney on Tuesday.
Australian federal Treasurer Josh Frydenberg has called for rapid antigen tests to replace PCR tests for most interstate travelers, to relieve pressure on testing centers.
"Using that rapid antigen test ahead of interstate travel is a better approach than the more expensive and time consuming PCR test," Frydenberg told the ABC.
"I think that's a sensible balance recognizing that people want some level of surety about their health status before they travel."
"But at the same time they want to avoid the long queues and long waiting times coming with the PCR tests."