COVID-19 Cases In the US: The United States has lately seen an alarming rise in COVID-19 cases linked to a new variant, which has become the third-most common strain of the summer. The new XFG variant, colloquially known as "Stratus," is rapidly spreading across the US. This variant has also been found in many European countries.

The Stratus or XFG variant transmits easily and is spreading worldwide. Stratus is a combination of variants F.7 and LP.8.1.2. While it didn’t account for a single reported U.S. case in April, it accounted for 43% of cases by the end of June.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said a new COVID variant is spreading across the country. The variant is officially named XFG but is being called Stratus. It was first found in Southeast Asia in January, and at the time was 0% of cases in the U.S., but by the end of June, it was about 14% of cases, the CDC said.