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The number of people in the United States hospitalized with Covid-19 is about to surpass the figure reached during this summer’s spike, federal data show, as a confluence of factors — from the continued evolution of the coronavirus to holiday gatherings — drives transmission. (Joseph, 1/3)

Covid hospitalizations are rising in the United States, even as hospitalizations for respiratory syncytial virus and the flu continue to fall. (Lovelace Jr, 12/30)

COVID-19 cases are on the uptick in Missouri, even as flu cases appear to be tapering off. Flu activity remains high but is declining in most areas across the U.S., according to the U.S. Centers for Disease and Control. So far, flu has caused 20 million illnesses, 21,000 hospitalizations and 13,000 deaths (including 61 children) in one of the worst flu seasons in more than 10 years. (Munz, 12/31)

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Friday it is tracking a new variant of concern dubbed XBB.1.5. According to new figures published Friday, it estimates XBB.1.5 makes up 40.5% of new infections across the country. (Tin, 12/30)

The XBB.1.5 COVID-19 subvariant — a new version of the Omicron variant — is sweeping through the United States right now amid a chaotic travel season and the early days of winter. Cases tied to the new variant nearly doubled over the last week, according to estimates from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. And that's stoked fears that more cases could be on the way nationwide. (Scribner, 12/31)

The lack of specialized Covid-19 treatments for people with weak immune systems has left millions of Americans with limited options if they get sick as the pandemic heads into an uncertain winter. Once heralded as game-changers for Covid patients considered at risk for getting seriously ill — one was used to treat then-President Donald Trump in 2020 — monoclonal antibodies are now largely ineffective against current Covid variants. (Gardner, 1/1)