The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention numbers showed nearly a six-fold increase in omicron’s share of infections in only one week.

Moderna said lab tests showed the half-dose booster shot increased by 37 times the level of so-called neutralizing antibodies able to fight omicron. 

For more than a year antibody drugs from Regeneron and Eli Lilly have been the go-to treatments for early COVID-19, thanks to their ability to head off severe disease and keep patients out of the hospital.

Fewer than 10 omicron cases have been detected in suburban Cook County, according to Dr. Rachel Rubin, co-lead and senior medical officer of the Cook County Department of Public Health. But additional cases are under investigation.

Cook County and state officials are hosting a one-day mass vaccination clinic at three suburban locations for all eligible residents.

The findings released Tuesday are preliminary and have not been peer-reviewed — the gold standard in scientific research — but they line up with other early data about omicron's behavior, including that it seems to be more easily transmitted.

The White House on Wednesday insisted there is no need for a lockdown because vaccines are widely available and appear to offer protection against the worst consequences of the virus. 

The first case of the omicron variant in suburban Cook County was reported Tuesday, according to county health officials.

Chicago's updated travel advisory includes 42 states, announced Dr. Allison Arwady, the commissioner of the Chicago Department of Public Health.

No appointment necessary. All three approved vaccines – Pfizer, Moderna and Johnson & Johnson – will be available for adults who can mix-and-match their booster. Only the Pfizer vaccine has been authorized for 16- and 17-year-olds.

COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations are surging. Doctors believe that’s still due to the delta variant though it’s expected Illinois will soon see more cases of the omicron variant as well. A key White House advisor tells us how the nation’s ready to tackle it with an eye toward equity.

Dr. Allison Arwady said “preliminary conversations” were taking place with representatives of business groups about requiring proof of vaccination or a negative test for diners or revelers, but no decision had been made.

The U.S. and many other nations already were urging adults to get booster shots to pump up immunity that can wane months after vaccination, calls that intensified with the discovery of the worrisome new omicron variant.

New cases in the U.S. climbed from an average of nearly 95,000 a day on Nov. 22 to almost 119,000 a day this week, and hospitalizations are up 25% from a month ago. 

Pfizer and its partner BioNTech said that while two doses may not be protective enough to prevent infection, lab tests showed a booster increased by 25-fold people’s levels of virus-fighting antibodies. 

The omicron variant of COVID-19, which is believed to be highly transmissible, has been detected in Chicago, state and city health officials announced Tuesday.