European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, one of the European Union’s top officials, said Wednesday that they expect newly discovered omicron variant will be the dominant coronavirus strain on the continent by next month.

What You Need To Know

  • A top European Union official said Wednesday that they expect newly discovered omicron variant will be the dominant coronavirus strain on the continent by next month

  • European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen expressed confidence that the European Union has the “strength” and “means” to overcome the virus, citing that 66.6% of the 27-nation bloc is fully vaccinated

  • Data released Tuesday by the CDC shows that omicron cases account for nearly 3% of all new COVID-19 cases nationwide, up from 0.4% the week prior

  • Early data shows that the omicron variant spreads more easily, but appears to cause more mild cases than previous strains of the coronavirus

“Like many of you, I’m sad that once again this Christmas will be overshadowed by the pandemic,” von der Leyen said, expressing frustration that the COVID-19 pandemic will once again upend some holiday celebrations.

She did, however express confidence that the 27-nation bloc has the “strength” and “means” to overcome the virus, touting the E.U.’s 66.6% vaccination rate.

The news comes as cases of the omicron variant are on the rise in the United States and in other parts of the world. 

Data released Tuesday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) shows that cases of the newly discovered omicron variant are on the rise in the United States, but the delta variant still accounts for the vast majority of COVID-19 cases in the country.

For the week ending on Dec. 4, the omicron variant accounted for less than 1% — 0.4% — of all new cases in the United States. The next week, omicron cases jumped to account for nearly 3% of all new COVID-19 cases nationwide.

These figures are estimates, but it does show that omicron cases are growing, and could potentially overtake delta as the dominant strain in the country in the coming weeks. 

It also comes as cases are on the rise nationwide — the U.S. on Monday surpassed 50 million total known coronavirus cases, and on Tuesday the country reached grim milestone of 800,000 COVID-19 deaths.

But early data also shows that the omicron variant appears to cause more mild cases than previous strains of the coronavirus— even though it does appear to be better at evading vaccines.

"Omicron is spreading at a rate we have not seen with any previous variant," World Health Organization Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said Tuesday, noting that the strain has been reported in 77 countries, and is likely in most countries. 

"Even if omicron does cause less severe disease, the sheer number of cases could once again overwhelm unprepared health systems," he warned, noting that health officials have expressed concerns "that people are dismissing omicron as mild”

The head of the U.K. Health Security Agency, Dr. Jenny Harries, said the omicron strain is displaying a staggering growth rate compared to previous variants.

“The difficulty is that the growth of this virus, it has a doubling time which is shortening, i.e. it’s doubling faster, growing faster,” Harries told a parliamentary committee on Wednesday. “In most regions in the U.K., it is now under two days. When it started, we were estimating about four or five.’’

Harries said the variant poses “probably the most significant threat we’ve had since the start of the pandemic.”

With omicron now on the scene, more countries are adopting restrictions. Italy, for example, this week required negative tests from vaccinated visitors, raising concerns that similar moves elsewhere will limit the ability of EU citizens to travel to see friends and relatives over the holidays.

Portugal adopted a similar measure on Dec. 1, requiring a mandatory negative test for all passengers on arriving flights, regardless of their vaccination status, point of origin or nationality.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.