Covid cases rise in US amid new virus strain

Los Angeles, April 19 : Covid-19 cases are rising in more than half of all US states due to the new coronavirus subvariant, said a report of the US business magazine Forbes.

White House Covid advisor Ashish Jha said on Sunday the vaccines are still "holding up" against the virus and the new strain does not cause more severe infection, Xinhua news agency reported citing the Forbes report.

Omicron subvariant BA.2 is more transmissible than the original strain, causing infections to tick up, Jha said.

The country is averaging about 35,000 new infections daily, up 42 per cent from two weeks prior, according to data of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.