Ohio and Rhode Island on Saturday became the 28th and 29th states to report cases of the Omicron virus variant.
Ohio officials said two cases were detected, both of which were among persons who were fully vaccinated more than six months ago.
Rhode Island officials confirmed one case. The patient is fully vaccinated and recently returned from New York.
Over half of the states in the country have confirmed cases of Omicron, a variant of the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, which causes COVID-19.
Across 29 states, 110 cases have been reported as of Saturday.
Officials disclosed the vaccination status of 66 of the infected individuals. Of those, the vast majority, or 52, were fully vaccinated. Some had even gotten booster shots.
Most of the Omicron cases in the United States have been among the vaccinated, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said in an update on Friday. Most patients have experienced mild symptoms, and some have recently returned from trips from Africa or been in contact with somebody else who had.
No deaths from Omicron have been reported anywhere in the world since Omicron was identified by South Africa scientists last month.
Early data indicates the variant, when compared to earlier strains, transmits more easily, can better evade the protection bestowed by vaccines, and may be able to better evade natural immunity, or protection from prior infection.
But COVID-19 cases caused by Omicron have been on average less severe.
Few U.S. patients have required hospitalization so far, according to reports from state health authorities and the CDC.
Cases have been confirmed in Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Idaho, Illinois, Iowa, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Texas, Utah, Virginia, Washington state, and Wisconsin.
Read full story [icon name=”arrow-right” prefix=”fas”] 29 US States Have Confirmed Omicron Variant Cases, Most Among Vaccinated