- A new Omicron subvariant, BA.3.2, nicknamed “Cicada,” has been detected in at least 25 states and 23 countries globally, and may evade protection from current vaccines.
- CDC data indicate that the XFG.1 variant remains the dominant COVID variant in the United States, but overall cases and hospitalizations remain very low.
- Understanding how COVID symptoms present can help minimize transmission, particularly amid shifts in health policy around vaccine recommendations.
Wastewater data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
The SARS-CoV-2 variant, BA.3.2, was first detected in 2024 in South Africa. In June 2025, BA.3.2, nicknamed “Cicada,” was first identified in the United States in an international traveler from the Netherlands.
The Omnicron subvariant began increasing in September 2025 and has since spread to 23 countries globally. This “highly divergent” Omicron subvariant may evade protection from current COVID-19 vaccines.
Still, CDC surveillance data
Surges in SARS-CoV-2 infection rates are typically driven by highly transmissible mutations and waning immunity from prior infection or vaccination.
It’s unclear whether BA.3.2 will become a dominant COVID variant in the United States at this time. Currently, the
“We are settling into COVID being a more seasonal respiratory virus,” said Rishi Khakhkhar, MD, Chief Medical Officer at Counsel Health and an emergency physician at Mount Sinai.
“This will come with upticks of infections and, unfortunately, hospitalizations, though severe disease is much less common than in the initial waves of the pandemic,” Khakhkhar told Healthline.
The CDC currently
Even as current COVID-19 vaccines could offer protection against new variants, recent shifts in public health policies could limit access.
In August 2025, Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. pulled $500 million in funding for mRNA vaccine development programs.
Additionally, the CDC no longer recommends COVID vaccines for pregnant people and young children.
Along those lines, in May 2025, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced it would limit updated COVID-19 vaccines to people ages 65 and older and children and adults with at least one chronic health condition.
The FDA’s framework for this policy is detailed in a 2025 opinion piece from FDA officials, published in the New England Journal of Medicine. The op-ed notes that exceptions will be made for individuals at higher risk of severe COVID-19 illness.
“High-risk and immunocompromised individuals in particular should make sure to stay current on the latest COVID vaccination,” Khakhkhar said.
Symptoms of COVID-19 often resemble those of common respiratory illnesses like the flu, but may also include a broad range.
Monica Gandhi, MD, MPH, a professor of medicine at the University of California, San Francisco, explained that the symptoms of ever-evolving Omicron subvariants are similar to those associated with other SARS-CoV-2 strains.
“There is no evidence that the symptoms caused by [new variants] differ from the symptoms caused by other Omicron subvariants,” Gandhi said. “The symptoms seem to be the same as with other recent subvariants of Omicron.”
A 2020 study suggested that common COVID-19 symptoms start in a particular order, but as the virus has evolved, the symptoms of the respiratory illness have become more varied.
In general, COVID-19 symptoms may include upper respiratory tract symptoms such as:
- fever
- coughing
- sneezing
- runny nose
Other common COVID-19 symptoms may include headache and muscle or body aches.
In some cases, COVID-19 infection may cause gastrointestinal symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, or diarrhea. Some people may also experience a temporary loss of taste or smell.
If you display any of the above symptoms and test positive for COVID-19, you may have contracted one of the new subvariants. It’s a good idea to let other people you’ve recently been in contact with know.
COVID-19 symptoms usually resolve without medical intervention. Some ways to reduce discomfort caused by symptoms include:
- rest
- plenty of fluids
- over-the-counter pain relievers and fever reducers
If your symptoms persist, you should see a healthcare professional for treatment. They may prescribe you the antiviral therapy Paxlovid if your symptoms are still within five days of the original onset.
In severe cases of COVID-19 infection, hospitalization may be required.
Gandhi added that immunocompromised individuals, older adults, and people who are not immune to the virus could develop more severe lower respiratory tract symptoms like pneumonia. If you’re immunocompromised, test positive for COVID-19, and develop symptoms, you should be evaluated by a healthcare professional.
Children and adults who’ve been vaccinated against COVID-19 are likely protected against severe illness from Omicron subvariants, including BA.3.2.
The
“I am not very concerned about the new variant because COVID-19 is not an eradicable virus, so we will always see new subvariants,” Gandhi said.
“However, we have high rates of population immunity in the United States at this time. Memory B cells —
Gandhi explained that both COVID-19 vaccines and natural infection trigger the production of T cells.
“B cells serve as memory banks to produce antibodies when needed [and] T cells both help B cells make antibodies and help recruit cells to attack the pathogen directly,” Gandhi explained.
“T cell immunity from the vaccines remains protective across variants, ‘from alpha to Omicron.’ Our T cell response, even across a mutated spike protein, is so robust that we have not seen