“A COVID-19 variant that has remained "underground" for years is catching the attention of health officials in the United States and abroad.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said in a March 19 report that it was tracking variant BA.3.2, nicknamed "Cicada," after routine surveillance noted a steady incline in U.S. cases. The World Health Organization (WHO) likewise listed the "highly mutated" virus on its Feb. 23 "variants of monitoring" record as more detections crop up in various countries, including Japan, Kenya, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom.”