The XBB strain circulating in the United States has yet to be shown to be more harmful

The XBB variant was first discovered in India in August 2022, and has been circulating in many countries including the United States, Malaysia and Singapore. XBB.1.5 is spreading rapidly in the United States. Global Times reporters conducted an investigation and interview on the actual spread of XBB mutant in the United States and related issues. White House health officials cautioned against "rushing to panic" over XBB.1.5. In New England, the region most affected by XBB.1.5, life is going on as usual, with some government departments and schools emphasizing personal protection measures such as wearing masks. American opinion and several foreign experts believe XBB is more transmissible, but there is no evidence that it causes more serious disease than other variants.

XBB.1.5 is responsible for 40% of infections

According to data released by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention late last year and early this year, about 40% of COVID-19 infections in the US are caused by the highly infectious XBB.1.5, with main symptoms including breathing difficulties, headache, sore throat, nasal congestion, fatigue and fever. The report said there was no evidence that XBB.1.5 caused severe diarrhea or other clinical manifestations of the gastrointestinal tract in patients any more than other strains. So people don't have to stock up on the drugs.

Barbara Mahon, director of the CDC's Division of Coronaviruses and other respiratory viruses, said in a recent interview with ABC News that there is no indication that XBB.1.5 causes more severe illness than any other variant.

The Hill published an article titled "White House Health Official warns against rushing to panic over XBB.1.5" on January 4. White House health officials said that "it is not clear whether this variant is more dangerous". A White House coronavirus response coordinator posted research on social media showing an "alarming increase" in cases of XBB.1.5 from 4% to 40% in a matter of weeks, citing the strain's ability to escape immune. But he said it was "unclear whether XBB.1.5 is any more dangerous" than previous variants.

For Americans who have experienced wave after wave of outbreaks, XBB is a very limited scare indeed. "It's breaking news, too, but it's 2023 and no one is paying that much attention," one person wrote in response to a message from the White House coronavirus response coordinator.

Bostonians: Every winter there is an increase in patients

New England, in the northeastern United States, was even more affected by XBB.1.5 -- the variant caused more than 50 percent of cases recently and 75 percent at its peak. New England includes Maine, Vermont, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Connecticut. Massachusetts has seen a small spike in COVID-19 infections since mid-November, according to data released by the state government. As of Dec. 27, the positive rate of nucleic acid tests skyrocketed to 11.17 percent from 5.56 percent on Nov. 13. The number of infections doubled during that period, from more than 600 cases a day in mid-November to around 1,300 around Christmas, with hospital admissions averaging 547 a day at the end of November and 987 at the end of December.

Boston, the capital of Massachusetts, is the largest city in New England and the economic and cultural center of the region. A family member of a Global Times correspondent in the US went to see a doctor at a Boston medical center earlier this year. When he arrived at the scheduled time of 9 am, he found that the waiting list was much larger than usual. However, local people said, "The number of patients in hospitals increases every winter, and there must be a high number of COVID-19 patients recently, but we have not seen or heard that hospitals are overloaded."

Barbara Mahon of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention also told the media that while the overall number of hospitalizations of people diagnosed with COVID-19 has increased across the United States, there is no significant anomaly in the number of hospitalizations in the northeastern states with the highest percentage of XBB.1.5 infections. As for what makes New England a "priority" for XBB, neither the US media nor relevant experts have given an answer.

New England recently called on people to take good personal protection in crowded places, Global Times reporters observed. On January 3, local Massachusetts channel WCVB reported that the city of Boston and at least two other municipalities are requiring students, teachers and staff to wear face masks when they return to school after winter break, stressing that they are worn "to prevent the spread of COVID-19, influenza and other respiratory viruses."

In addition to schools, some New England towns have issued "mandatory mask advisories." On Jan. 4, the city of Springfield in western Massachusetts issued a statement advising people to wear masks, especially those with underlying medical conditions and the elderly. The recommendation was made "out of an abundance of caution and based on XBB1.5 reports from the state and county," the statement said.

British expert: There is no need to restrict American travelers specifically