At the beginning of the pandemic, contact tracing data showed us where COVID-19 was predominately spreading. Unfortunately, as our contact-tracing efforts have slowed, we don’t have such a clear picture of where people are most likely to contract omicron and its subvariants.
What we do know is that while the virus has evolved to be much more transmissible than previous variants, the way COVID-19 spreads hasn’t changed. “There is currently no change in how each individual, regardless of daily activity, can pick up this virus,” Mark Cameron, an infectious disease researcher at Case Western Reserve University, told HuffPost.
Because of this, we can assume that there are some hotspots for BA.2 and other omicron subvariants compared to others. Here are common places where experts say COVID-19 is still spreading:
Crowded indoor events
We’ve all heard it a million times now. COVID-19 is spreading in crowded indoor spaces – think gyms, restaurants, concerts, bars and the like.
Cameron said there was no shortage of anecdotes about how the virus spreads at such events. Massive outbreaks have recently been recorded following Phish’s four-day concert run, the White House Correspondents’ Dinner and the Washington Gridiron Club’s annual dinner, as well as on cruises and after high school proms.
In crowded, poorly ventilated indoor spaces, aerosols containing the virus can become airborne and easily inhaled by many.
“Similar to other COVID variants, BA.2 spreads more easily in crowded indoor spaces with limited ventilation,” said Bernadette Boden-Albala, director and founding dean of the Public Health Program at the University of California, Irvine.
households
COVID-19 is also known for spreading easily between family members – and roommates – who live together. Research released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in February shows that COVID-19 now has a household transmission rate of about 53%. Transmission is even more likely when members of the same household are unvaccinated with people not wearing a mask or isolating.
“The ability to transmit from one person to another at close range, that’s still going to happen. It hasn’t changed how we can contract this very contagious airborne virus when we’re in close proximity to another person,” Cameron said.
Boden-Albala said that the spread of households in apartments and multi-family houses is particularly pronounced, reaffirming that COVID-19 – and all its strains – can be a disease of differences.
Even though the variants have changed, the spread of COVID remains largely the same.Nursing homes and community accommodation
Since the pandemic began, COVID-19 has been shown to plague senior care facilities. While recent data from the CDC shows that booster shots significantly help nursing home residents avoid severe outcomes, nursing homes and other residential facilities in the community are still vulnerable to larger outbreaks.
Seventeen nursing homes in Winnipeg, Canada, reported outbreaks last week. A Vermont women’s prison experienced an outbreak in late April, as did a handful of long-term care facilities in the state.
“These have been outbreak hotbeds since the beginning and still are,” Cameron said.
Close contacts indoors
Andrew Noymer, an epidemiologist and demographer who studies infectious diseases at the University of California, Irvine, said the key finding is that COVID-19 is spreading indoors. “Everywhere you go indoors, it spreads — everywhere and everywhere,” Noymer said.
Boden-Albala noted that BA.2 is spreading in places that are the usual suspects: “Environments like bars and restaurants where participants can share food and drink or wear their masks at times — if at all.”
Whether you’re having dinner with a friend, going to a relative’s for game night, taking a cab, going to an office, or out to eat, being indoors puts you at risk of contracting COVID-19. While airplanes are typically less risky due to their powerful air filtration systems, people can still contract COVID-19 while flying if they are seated near an infected person. Although masks are no longer compulsory on planes, Noymer still recommends wearing an N95 mask on the plane.
The risk of exposure to COVID-19 may be lower now than it was in January, when the country saw a massive spike, but it’s still notable given the latest variants are so much more contagious.
“These new Omicron variants are fit and easily transferrable,” said Cameron.
Experts are still learning about COVID-19. The information in this story is known or available at the time of publication, but guidance is subject to change as scientists learn more about the virus. Please check the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for the most up-to-date recommendations.