By Stephanie Nebehay

GENEVA (Reuters). -The Omicron Coronavirus variant of Omicron has been identified in 89 countries. The number of Omicron cases in communities is increasing in the 1.5 to 3-day period, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), on Saturday.

Omicron spreads rapidly in countries that have high immunity levels, although it’s not clear if the virus is able to evade immunity or its inherent increased transmissibility. The WHO updated this information.

Omicron was identified by the agency on Nov. 26 and it was immediately declared a variant of concern. Much remains to be known, especially about the extent of its illness.

The WHO stated that there is still not enough data to determine the severity of Omicron. More data is needed to determine the severity of Omicron and its impact on pre-existing and vaccine immunity.

It stated, “There is still very limited data available and there has been no peer-reviewed evidence on the effectiveness of Omicron vaccines.”

WHO advised that there could be an overload in hospitals due to rapid growth of the cases.

“Hospitalizations are on the rise in South Africa as well as the UK. Given rapidly rising case loads, many health care systems could become overloaded.”