ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) – Lab testing has confirmed a COVID-19 case involving the omicron variant in Minnesota, state health officials said Thursday.
The Minnesota Department of Health said the variant was found during its surveillance program in a specimen from a Minnesota resident who had recently traveled to New York City.
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The department says the man, from Hennepin County, had been vaccinated. He developed mild symptoms on Nov. 22 and sought COVID-19 testing on Nov. 24. His symptoms have subsided.
The person attended the Anime NYC 2021 convention at the Javits Center from Nov. 19-21, the health department said.
Much remains unknown about the new variant, including whether it is more contagious, as some health authorities suspect, whether it makes people more seriously ill, and whether it can thwart the vaccine.
The U.S. recorded its first confirmed case of the omicron variant Wednesday. A vaccinated traveler who returned to California after a trip to South Africa on Nov. 22, developed mild symptoms and tested positive for COVID-19 Monday. Researchers at the University of California, San Francisco obtained a sample from the patient Tuesday evening and worked feverishly overnight to assemble the genetic sequence.
Omicron is classified by the World Health Organization as a “variant of concern” as scientists work to determine how it may compare with the predominant delta variant in terms of transmissibility and severity. Scientists also are studying the degree to which existing vaccines and therapies protect against omicron.