Replacing EG.5, also known as Eris, and FL.1.5.1, referred to as Fornax, the HV.1 variant currently accounts for more than a quarter of reported COVID cases in the U.S. It is followed by Eris and Fornax, which contribute to 21.9% and 12% of all cases, respectively.
HV.1 first showed up on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s COVID variant tracker in late July, right as cases began to surge. Although the summer surge of COVID hospitalizations has been on the decline for several weeks, HV.1’s presence has continued to grow quietly, yet steadily.
Certain experts have raised concerns regarding HV.1, indicating that it might have a heightened potential for transmission when compared to some of its predecessors. Furthermore, there are suggestions that it could be capable of evading prior immunity, which could explain its increased prevalence in the United States. variant currently accounts
Dr. Dan Barouch, who serves as the director of the Center for Virology and Vaccine Research at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston, expressed his thoughts on this matter. He believes that HV.1 may possess a slightly greater transmissibility or the ability to evade immunity, which could account for its dominant presence, as he shared with NBC.