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Data: N.Y. Times; Cartogram: Kavya Beheraj/Axios 

COVID cases are rising in all but four states and Washington, D.C., as Omicron and new, potentially more transmissible versions of the Omicron variant, sweep across the U.S.

The big picture: COVID rates in the Northeast are reaching some of their highest levels in three months. But the South may be in for a new wave come summer.

A South African study found two of the new Omicron subvariants are able to evade antibodies from previous infections and vaccinations.

By the numbers: There were roughly 62,500 new daily cases over the last week, up 46% from 43,000 two weeks ago.

In the Northeast, Maine saw the biggest jump, with a case rate of 47.5 new cases per 100,000 people, roughly double the levels two weeks ago.

Rhode Island and Vermont had the highest case rates at 50.1 and 49.9 new cases per 100,000, respectively.

In the Pacific Northwest, Washington reported 33.4 new cases per 100,000, up from 29.8 two weeks ago.

Case counts were below 10 new infections per 100,000 people across 22 states, including Arizona and Oklahoma where rates dropped to 4.6 and 5.2 new cases per 100,000, respectively. 

Between the lines: The U.S. averaged roughly 340 deaths from COVID a day, down 12% from about 390 two weeks ago.

Reality check: As we've warned before, the data on new cases are getting less reliable as the public testing infrastructure continues to wind down and home test results are less likely to be reported to officials. 

But it still offers a window into the broad trends of COVID spread in the states.

What they're saying: While cases are currently up in the Northern states, Southern states should be prepared for a possible surge of COVID-19 cases this summer, former White House coronavirus response coordinator Deborah Birx said this week.

"What has happened each time is we've had a summer surge across the South and a winter surge that starts in our Northern Plains and moves down, accelerated by Thanksgiving and the holidays," Birx told CBS' "Face the Nation."

"So if you're going to go see your grandmother, or someone that has metastatic breast cancer, or someone under treatment for Hodgkin's disease, or a family member with Down syndrome, you need to test before you go," she said.

COVID cases jump in Northeast, Pacific Northwest

COVID cases are rising in all but 4 states and D.C. as Omicron, and potentially more transmissible versions of it, sweep across the U.S.

Data graphics

Coronavirus

COVID cases are rising in all but four states and Washington, D.C., as Omicron and new, potentially more transmissible versions of the Omicron variant, sweep across the U.S.The big picture: COVID rates in the Northeast are reaching some of their highest levels in three months. But the South may be in for a new wave come summer.

The U.S. faces a range of health care flashpoints — unaffordable drugs, opioids, vaping — as we debate whether to adopt universal care. For now, the Affordable Care Act is the law of the land, but Republicans want to issue it a final death blow.

Health

A new line of Omicron could be putting most of the U.S. in the path of a sustained bump in COVID-19 cases, with the Northeast, Mid-Atlantic and Pacific Northwest accounting for much of the spread.

The big picture: This rise is largely attributed to the Omicron subvariant BA.2, which still accounts for about 75% of all new cases. 

But about 20% of new cases have been attributed to another offshoot of Omicron known as BA.2.12.1, the CDC reported this week.

The rise comes as the federal transportation mask mandate — one of the last big federal pandemic restrictions — was suddenly struck down this week by a federal judge.

By the numbers: New COVID cases rose nationwide by about 35% over the last two weeks.

However, at roughly 39,000 new cases, they are still a fraction of what was seen back in January when the U.S. was averaging almost 760,000 new cases per day.

The data shows Vermont has the highest case rate at 41.7 new cases per 100,000 people, while the reported case rate is lowest in South Dakota at two new cases per 100,000 people.

Overall, deaths dropped to roughly 400 a day, down 32% from nearly 600 a day two weeks ago.

Reality check: The data regarding new cases are getting less reliable as the public testing infrastructure continues to wind down — more quickly in some states than in others — and home tests results are less likely to be reported to officials.

Officials have also shifted their focus to using wastewater surveillance and tracking hospitalizations and deaths from this virus.

The bottom line: The data still offers some sense of what's happening with the virus as individuals return to their pre-pandemic ways while still trying to mitigate their risk.

While cases are still much lower than they have been, the rising numbers bear watching.

COVID cases on the rise in Mid-Atlantic, Pacific Northwest

COVID-19 cases are on the rise across much of the U.S. again, with the Northeast, as well as the Midwest and Pacific Northwest accounting for many of the new cases.

COVID-19

A new line of Omicron could be putting most of the U.S. in the path of a sustained bump in <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="COVID-19 cases" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/coronavirus-latest-news-quick-highlights-57a186a3-7547-45bf-852a-83019849d8d5.html" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/coronavirus-latest-news-quick-highlights-57a186a3-7547-45bf-852a-83019849d8d5.html" target="_self">COVID-19 cases</a>, with the Northeast, Mid-Atlantic and Pacific Northwest accounting for much of the spread.The big picture: This rise is largely attributed to the Omicron subvariant BA.2, which still accounts for about 75% of all new cases.

After two months of plummeting COVID cases across the U.S., the virus is on the rise again, with the Northeast accounting for many of the new cases. 

The big picture: We knew this was coming. Now it's just a matter of seeing how large an impact this surge of the BA.2 subvariant of Omicron has in the U.S. 

"We've got to be careful, but I don't think this is a moment where we need to be excessively concerned," White House's COVID-19 response coordinator Ashish Jha told the Today show this week, pointing to low infection numbers and hospitalizations. 

By the numbers: Nationwide, there were an average of more than 31,500 cases, up 14% from the nearly 28,000 cases reported two weeks ago.

Cases are on the rise in 27 states, plus the District of Columbia. 

The Northeast, in particular, is seeing some of the highest case rates, such as New York, which had 25.7 cases per 100,000 people. Officials in New York said Wednesday two new subvariants of BA.2 are circulating there, which may explain why New York has become a hot spot, the New York Times reported.

Rhode Island had case rate with 32.1 new cases per 100,000 people.

Several Southern states continued reporting drops in cases, including North Carolina which had 1.7 new cases per 100,000 people.

There were about 530 deaths a day, down 24% from the about 700 deaths a day two weeks ago. 

What's next: The White House on Wednesday announced a two-week extension of its transportation mask mandate, which had been due to expire on Monday, and also renewed the COVID public health emergency for at least three more months.

Philadelphia brought back its indoor mask mandate this week becoming one of the only U.S. cities to have such a mandate. It was followed by several universities. It's unclear if others will follow. 

U.S. COVID cases on the rise again

After two months of plummeting COVID cases across the U.S., the virus is on the rise again.

After two months of plummeting COVID cases across the U.S., the virus is on the rise again, with the Northeast accounting for many of the new cases. The big picture: <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="We knew this was coming" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/covid-cases-rise-again-in-half-the-states-43180a96-9339-450d-966a-0631d04d9490.html" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/covid-cases-rise-again-in-half-the-states-43180a96-9339-450d-966a-0631d04d9490.html" target="_self">We knew this was coming</a>. Now it&#x27;s just a matter of seeing how large an impact this surge of the BA.2 subvariant of Omicron has in the U.S.

Deaths from COVID-19 are on the rise again after several weeks of upward ticking case rates sparked by Omicron variants.

Driving the news: The U.S. averaged roughly 365 daily deaths, up 7% from about 342 two weeks ago. That's still a fraction of where things stood several months ago when the daily average was in the thousands.

This week, the U.S. will likely reach 1 million deaths from COVID. As the milestone nears, President Biden said that "we must not grow numb to such sorrow. To heal, we must remember. We must remain vigilant against this pandemic and do everything we can to save as many lives as possible."

Yes, but: The increase in deaths comes after several weeks of declines. While increasingly transmissible Omicron variants have generally not appeared to cause more serious illness, some people are still dying.

Waning immunity and low booster uptake has also meant a growing share of the deaths are among the vaccinated, officials warn.

By the numbers: There were roughly 77,000 new daily cases over the last week, up 44% from about 53,000 two weeks ago.

Reported cases rates remained highest in the Northeast, with Rhode Island marking 67.3 new cases per 100,000 people, up from 38.4 per 100,000 two weeks ago.

Rhode Island, Massachusetts, Vermont and Maine were the four states with 50 or more new cases per 100,000 people over the last two weeks.

On the flip side, 15 states reported having 10 or fewer new cases per 100,00o people over the same time, including Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Georgia, Idaho, Louisiana Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Texas, South Carolina, South Dakota and Wyoming. 

Five states reported declines in COVID case rates, including Montana, which reported 5.2 new cases per 100,000 people, down from 5.5 per 100,000 two weeks ago. Alaska, Colorado, Pennsylvania and Washington also reported dips. D.C. also reported a drop, however, the CDC said Wednesday the District had a two-week lapse in reporting, Axios' Chelsea Cirruzzo reports.

The bottom line: As variants spread, warm weather returns and more people let their guard down, cases are on the rise. While numbers appear far better than what they once were, officials warn the virus isn't done with us yet.

Editor's note: This article has been updated with a statement from President Biden.

Deaths from COVID begin to rise again

Deaths from COVID-19 are on the rise again after several weeks of upward ticking case rates sparked by Omicron variants.Driving the news: The U.S. averaged roughly 365 daily deaths, up 7% from about 342 two weeks ago. That&#x27;s still a fraction of where things stood several months ago when the daily average was in the thousands.

As COVID-19 began to spread in the U.S. in March 2020, Trump administration officials estimated 100,000 to 200,000 Americans might die. A worst-case scenario, they said, meant between 1.6 million and 2.2 million might perish. The figures felt staggeringly high.

Two years later, the U.S. has reached 1 million deaths even as COVID has faded from the headlines.

At this grim milestone, we sought to refocus on the scale of loss suffered. Read our special report here.

1 million COVID deaths: Visualizing the scale of loss suffered in America

Remembering the lives lost to COVID-19 in America.

A collage of vignettes depicting scenes of life during the pandemic, including a person wearing a mask, washing their hands, and a gravestone.

A collage of vignettes from life during the pandemic.

As COVID-19 began to spread in the U.S. in March 2020, Trump administration officials estimated 100,000 to 200,000 Americans might die. A worst-case scenario, they said, meant between 1.6 million and 2.2 million might perish. The figures felt staggeringly high.<ul><li>Two years later, the U.S. has reached 1 million deaths even as COVID has faded from the headlines.</li></ul>At this grim milestone, we sought to refocus on the scale of loss suffered. <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Read our special report here" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/one-million-us-covid-19-deaths/" data-vars-content-id="e536bd95-d702-4672-aabe-d655645eaafc" data-vars-headline="1 million COVID deaths: Visualizing the scale of loss suffered in America" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/one-million-us-covid-19-deaths/" target="_self">Read our special report here</a>.

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Kavya Beheraj

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Deaths from COVID begin to rise again

1 million COVID deaths: Visualizing the scale of loss suffered in America

COVID cases jump in Northeast, Pacific Northwest

COVID cases on the rise in Mid-Atlantic, Pacific Northwest

U.S. COVID cases on the rise again