Image Riding the subway in Manhattan on Friday, when New York officials reported more than 20,000 new coronavirus cases in the state. But the spike in recent days is because of the fast-spreading Omicron variant, epidemiologists believe. The Omicron variant has been tearing across New York, including among vaccinated people. Only a fraction of positive cases are analyzed to determine whether they are Delta, Omicron or another variant. But in Tompkins County, which includes Ithaca, about 117 Omicron cases have been detected, more than in any other county, according to the governor’s office.

Source: New York Times December 18, 2021 11:33 UTC