SALT LAKE CITY — The omicron variant of COVID-19 has demolished all of the old records for confirmed case numbers — globally, nationally and locally.
Pre-Omicron:
- World Cases: 5.79 million (Week ending 4/25/21)
- U.S. Cases: 1.75 million (Week ending 1/11/21)
- Utah Cases: 23,700 (Week ending 11/22/21)
Omicron:
- World Cases: 16.96 million (Week ending 1/9/22)
- U.S. Cases: 4.76 million (Week ending 1/10/22)
- Utah Cases: 54,400 (Week ending 1/10/22)
In Utah, there are hours-long wait times for testing with nearly one-third of people testing positive. That makes it certain far more people are infected. The Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington estimates about 70,000 people were likely to be infected on 1/11/22.
