Dr. Anthony Fauci on Sunday said the signals are a bit encouraging as far as the severity of disease seen with the new omicron variant of the coronavirus, giving an optimistic projection while he and other health officials continued to urge Americans to remain vigilant as omicron COVID-19 cases are expected to rise in the U.S.

Though its too early to really make any definitive statements about it, thus far, it does not look like theres a great degree of severity to it, Fauci, who serves as director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said in an interview with CNNs State of the Union. But we have really got to be careful before we make any determinations that it is less severe or it really doesnt cause any severe illness comparable to delta.

Fauci cited recent reviews of current COVID-19 cases in South Africa, where the omicron variant has quickly become the dominant strain after its discovery last month. Early reports have suggested that cases there have generally been more mild, though researchers have cautioned that there are still too many variables to consider before making a certain conclusion. These variables include South Africa having a relatively younger population thats largely already been exposed to the virus, as Nature reported .