The CDC's Nowcast data tracker, which displays COVID-19 estimates and projections for two-week periods, reflected that the KP.3.1.1 variant accounted for 57.2% of positive infections, followed by XEC at 10.7% in the two weeks starting on Sept. 29 and ending on Oct. 12.

The CDC is "monitoring the XEC variant," Rosa Norman, a CDC spokesperson told USA TODAY. This variant "is the proposed name of a recombinant, or hybrid, of the closely related Omicron lineages KS.1.1 and KP.3.3."

Health chiefs are now warning it is “vital” for people to get vaccinated against Covid and flu as “the threat of winter viruses is all too real”. Read more: NHS warning as

"CDC is monitoring the XEC variant," Rosa Norman, a CDC spokesperson told USA TODAY. "XEC is the proposed name of a recombinant, or hybrid, of the closely related Omicron lineages

Here is what is known about the new Covid XEC variant from cases in the UK, symptoms, what the World Health Organisation has said and more.

Health experts in the UK have identified a new COVID-19 variant, XEC, as the country prepares for the usual rise in winter infections. The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) has noted a slight increase in hospitalizations,