(OMI)NOUS OR SIGNAL? Given patchy global vaccination penetration and ongoing hesitancy at home, the emergence of a new Covid-19 variant was as inevitable as the fourth wave. Far less inevitable is the health risk posed by Omicron. Especially if there is stricter adherence to the proven nonpharmaceutical protocols and should the emergence of this new variant help spur vaccination rates. Should Omicron fail to weaken hesitancy automatically, then manual interventions such as mandates and restrictions will probably have to be deployed.