Coronavirus Watch: A new, worrisome variant every few months?

As the world waits to learn more about the severity of the omicron variant of the coronavirus, many Americans are asking:

Is this our new reality, always fearful some new mutation will destroy what little normalcy we've been able to recover?

USA TODAY's Elizabeth Weise spoke with experts about two possible paths ahead. Read more here.

It's Monday, and this is Coronavirus Watch from the USA TODAY Network. Here's more news to know:

• Planning to fly into the U.S. soon? Be prepared for more stringent testing requirements. The CDC has shortened the window all international air travelers have for a pre-departure test from three days to one.
• A vaccine mandate for private-sector workers across New York City will take effect this month, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced Monday.
• Delawaresaw the highest number of new daily cases since January last week.
• The J&J vaccine serves as an effective booster on top of full vaccination from the Pfizer vaccine, a new study found.
• Current vaccines might be less effective against the omicron variant than the initial virus and subsequent variants, Sarah Gilbert, a professor of vaccinology at the University of Oxford and one of the creators of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine, told the BBC.

Today's numbers: The U.S. has reported more than 49.1 million COVID-19 cases and 788,400 deaths, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. Worldwide, there have been more than 266.1 million cases and more than 5.2 million deaths. About 71% of people in the U.S. have received at least one vaccine shot, and about 60% are fully vaccinated, according to the CDC. Among U.S. adults, 83% have received at least one shot, and about 72% are fully vaccinated.

Tracking the pandemic: See the numbers in your area here. See where cases are rising here. See vaccination rates here. And here, compare vaccinations rates worldwide and see which countries are using which vaccines.

– Grace Hauck, USA TODAY breaking news reporter, @grace_hauck