Europe can’t shake off covid as variant fuels summer spike

A patient in ICU last month in Germany, where hospitals are also under strain. (Image: Getty)

Tue, 19 Jul 2022

By Naomi KresgeIt was supposed to be a post-covid-19 summer in Europe. Masks are gone in most places and vacation season is in full swing as workers rush for the beaches and cities they missed in the two years marked by the pandemic. But instead, the reality confronting people is that the virus never went away.A super-transmissible subvariant of the omicron strain, known as BA.5, is fuelling a fresh increase in infections, with cases climbing across the UK and the continent. Intensive-care admissions are rising, according to the Europ...

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