The stories are the same. People are still getting COVID despite multiple vaccination shots. Hospitalizations from COVID has risen 11% during the week that ended November 25, 2023. Mandy Cohen, M.D., M.P.H, the director of Centers for Disease Control (CDC), is asking Americans as of yesterday to begin wearing masks again. Heath leaders have declared warnings of the “tripledemic” of flu and RSV cases.

Currently, the new COVID variant, HV.1, is the most dominant variant and a descendent subvariant of the omicron family. This variant is more transmissible but not at an alarming rate so far. It appears to be contained. The FDA has already authorized booster shots for this variant for 2023 through 2024 with Moderna, Pfizer and Novavax. More variants are expected to come.

At what point do we get another pandemic where everyone is practically quarantined at home and works remotely? Currently, some people are experiencing co-infections of influenza and COVID. But people have been experiencing these dual infections since the early days of the COVID pandemic. Is it possible for these genes in these viruses to intermingle and evolve? Quite possibly. Potentially a splice of genes during the co-infection could make influenza or COVID more dangerous. COVID with its faster evolution would be the better potential candidate again to create a pandemic. Luckily, as a side note, COVID can’t interact with some of the lethal bacteria strains. Otherwise, that would certainly cause a pandemic and could potentially eradicate much of the human population.