NY Hands Out More Test Kits As 'Stealth Omicron' Variant Spreads

NEW YORK — As an offshoot of the coronavirus variant known as "stealth omicron" spreads around the world, New York officials are distributing millions more at-home coronavirus test kits.

Tests will be made available to food banks and senior centers throughout the state on request, state officials said Thursday.

Omicron brought record COVID-19 cases and near-record hospitalizations. Now the possibly more-contagious stealth subvariant known as BA.2 is causing an increasing number of infections in New York, according to news reports.

Worldwide, COVID-19 infections rose in the last week, reversing a decline in cases that first began in January, the Associated Press reported. In addition to outbreaks in China and South Korea largely attributed to the subvariant, COVID cases have increased in the United Kingdom in recent weeks, while Germany continues to break its pandemic records. Another contributing factor has been the suspension of nearly all COVID-19 protocols.

The stealth subvariant appears 30 percent more transmissible than the original omicron variant, according to early evidence the World Health Organization cites. The WHO has found no difference in severity between the variants. Those who caught COVID-19 from the omicron variant (BA.1) can get re-infected with the stealth subvariant (BA.2), but studies suggest infection from the former provides "strong protection" against re-infection from the latter.

Currently, the coronavirus is quiet in New York., despite a recent one-day spike in reported positivity. As of March 15, New York had a seven-day average of 9.7 cases per 100,000 residents, barely above the March 7 average of 9.3 and far below the Jan. 15 rate of 262.3 cases per 100,000 residents.

"While our numbers remain low, now is the time to ramp up the distribution of tests and build up our stockpile so we can bolster our preparedness for the future to protect our communities, and safely move forward," Gov. Kathy Hochul said in an announcement Thursday about the test kits, more than 20 million of which will be distributed across the state through the spring.

State officials said they have procured more than 90 million rapid COVID-19 tests in recent months. More than 54 million tests have been distributed since the beginning of the year, including nearly 30 million tests to schools, 12.5 million tests to nursing homes and adult-care facilities, and more than 10 million tests to local officials for public distribution in their respective communities.

About 20 million tests have been stored to help prepare for any potential surges later in 2022.

"Testing kits are essential tools in our fight against COVID-19," said Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins (D-Westchester). "As we continue to take steps to resume life under a new normal and get New York moving forward, I encourage people to utilize these available resources, including getting vaccinated and boosted."

Patch Editor Josh Bakan and the Associated Press contributed to this report.