COVID-19 appears to be on the rise in some parts of California as a new, highly contagious subvariant — featuring 'razor blade throat' symptoms overseas — is becoming increasingly dominant.

NB.1.8.1, a new COVID-19 variant that has caused concern among WHO officials, is now spreading in America, according to CDC data.

A relatively new and seemingly highly contagious variant of Covid, NB.1.8.1, or the “Nimbus” variant, has been described by the World Health Organisation (WHO) as a “variant under monitoring” (VUM). That’s partly because it seems to be so easily transmissible,