2022 is following in the footsteps of 2020. With more than half a million new Covid-19 cases reported in the United States heading into the new year, a third-year of the worldwide epidemic is expected. With almost 580,000 infections, the country exceeded its own record for daily new cases, surpassing a mark set just the day before. According to the New York Times database, Thursday's total surpassed the 4,88,000 new cases reported on Wednesday, which was nearly double the highest numbers seen last winter. The sole silver lining is that the Omicron strain causes less sickness and requires less hospitalisation, especially among those who have been vaccinated.

Even those who have been completely vaccinated are being advised to avoid risky New Year's Eve celebrations and avoid hugs and kisses as the virus spreads, infecting essential workers such as medical staff, airline employees, restaurant workers, and others. Dr. Michael Osterholm, a member of President Biden's transition team's Covid task committee, told CBS News that he expects the issue to worsen in the following weeks due to a "viral storm."

The virus's effects are already being felt on the ground, with roughly 1000 flights cancelled in the United States on Thursday and restaurants beginning to close as the illness wreaks havoc on New Year's Eve celebrations. Schools and universities are reassessing the situation as they prepare to resume on January 3 following the Christmas break. A return to online learning has already been announced by some.

All of this comes after the CDC recently reduced the necessary quarantine time for a positive Covid case from 10 days to five days in an effort to keep society running throughout the outbreak. Approximately 200 million Americans, or nearly 62 percent of the population, are completely vaccinated, with over 68 million receiving a booster shot. It's possible that this explains the low rates of hospitalisation and fatality. Despite the increase in infections, mortality have decreased by 5% in the last two weeks, with an average of 1221 deaths per day (compared to nearly 3000 deaths per day during the height of the pandemic in 2020), while hospitalizations have increased by just 15% to an average of 78,781 per day. But no one is sticking their necks out with projections written in stone (one expert said he's rather use pencil than pen in calculations) even though Omicron is now a confirmed milder variant. It is only the 15th Greek alphabet of 25. Pi comes next, and humankind is hoping it does not get a life.

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