Omicron rewrites the COVID plan for 2022

FILE PHOTO: People walk across Westminster Bridge after new measures were announced yesterday due to the Omicron coronavirus variant, in London, Britain, November 28, 2021. REUTERS/Tom Nicholson

CHICAGO (Reuters) - As the Omicron variant gains momentum in Europe and the United States, scientists are rewriting their expectations for the COVID-19 pandemic next year.

Just weeks ago, disease experts were predicting that countries would begin to emerge from the pandemic in 2022 after enduring a series of surges driven by the Alpha, Beta, Gamma and Delta variants. First among them would be populations with a significant amount of exposure to the coronavirus, through a combination of infections and vaccination.