Skyrocketing COVID-19 case rates have caused officials In New York City and elsewhere to scale back their New Year's Eve celebrations. Around the country, people are facing tough decisions.

The seven-day average of new COVID-19 cases topped 280,000 this week as the omicron variant spreads rapidly across the country, according to Johns Hopkins University's tracker.

New data from the CDC released on Tuesday shows that while omicron remains the dominant variant, delta — which is the more severe strain — is still a worrisome driving force behind the current surge.

Washington, D.C., is considered the highest-risk place for COVID infection in the nation. Data shows D.C. had 1,192 new cases per day and 169 cases per 100,000 in the seven-day period ending Monday.

People who test positive need to isolate themselves for 5 days if they don't show symptoms. The change reflects "what we know about the spread of the virus" and vaccine protection, the CDC chief says.

Most states are at the highest level of COVID risk and hot spots are emerging across the country as the omicron variant takes hold. Here are the latest numbers by state.

Vaccinated health care staff and other essential workers can return to work five days — rather than the previous 10 days — after a positive COVID-19 test if they meet certain safety standards.

An undisclosed number of passengers and crew aboard the Carnival Freedom tested positive. It was the third outbreak this week affecting ships operated by Carnival and Royal Caribbean.

The number of new COVID cases in New York doubled in just three days. State officials say the impact of the winter omicron surge on the workforce is already being felt.

In a preemptive move, United, Delta and others canceled dozens of flights scheduled for Friday. They say the omicron spike has left them with staffing shortages.