New COVID-19 subvariant detected in Canada

A new COVID-19 subvariant has been detected in Canada. The new variant, XBB1.5, has been confirmed in British Columbia.

As of October 17, the World Health Organization said that the variant had been reported in 26 countries. The variant is currently causing COVID-19 outbreaks across the United States.

The XBB1.5 variant is better at evading the vaccine. Data does not suggest that this variant is causing more severe disease.