As research around the Omicron variant of the coronavirus continues, various health officials say that it seems to have milder symptoms than previous variants, but has higher transmissibility and can cause more strains going forward.

White House Chief Medical Advisor Anthony Fauci said that the new variant is "almost certainly" not harsher than previous variants, such as Delta.

"There is some suggestion that it might even be less severe," he told AFP, as reported by Business Insider. "When you look at some of the cohorts that are being followed in South Africa, the ratio between the number of infections and the number of hospitalizations seems to be less than with Delta."

More concerning, however, are Moderna CEO Stephane Bancel's comments about the variant's transmissibility.

"We believe this virus is highly infectious," he said in an interview with CNBC. "It seems to be much more infectious than delta... It is highly possible that the efficacy of the vaccines -- all of them -- is going down."

Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla said he is optimistic that the company's Covid-19 treatment pill will have positive results against the Omicron variant.

Covid-19 vaccinations are soaring as various states across the country continue to confirm cases of the Omicron variant, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Major vaccine manufacturers including Pfizer and Moderna have stated that they are working to find ways to modify their shots to fight the mutated strain of the virus.

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