Thanksgiving once again comes at a precarious time this year, as new Covid-19 subvariants take over and the cold weather brings people indoors, often in family gatherings where the virus can easily spread.
The U.S. is heading into its third Covid-19 Thanksgiving in better shape than the last two, but holiday gatherings will provide a test of whether the nation can avoid another major winter surge, epidemiologists and virus experts say.
Thanksgiving once again comes at a precarious time, as new subvariants take over and the return of cold weather brings people back indoors, often in family gatherings where the virus can easily spread.
The holiday last year coincided with the arrival of an early version of the Omicron variant that kicked off an explosive rise in cases and the second-deadliest Covid-19 wave.
Only the prior winter, when vaccination efforts were just beginning, saw a higher peak in deaths.