"COVID-19 Updates: New Variant Symptoms, Boosters, and Rising Cases in Cape Cod, California, and Escambia County"

COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations are surging again in Cape Cod, Massachusetts, with a 40.9% increase in hospital admissions in Barnstable County. The surge is likely due to a combination of factors, including waning immunity, changing social behaviors, and possible immune escape by new sub-variants of the omicron strain. The latest omicron subvariant, EG.5, is now the most prevalent strain in the US but is not causing more severe disease. A new booster shot targeting omicron offshoot XBB 1.5 is expected to be available in the fall.