PORTLAND, Maine (AP) The number of COVID-19 infections is growing in Maine, with the seven-day average more than doubling since May 2.

The Maine Center for Disease Control reported 1,198 new infections Tuesday as the state reflected a regional trend of growing infections driven by new variants of the coronavirus.

The number of people hospitalized with the coronavirus grew to 162, the highest point in two months, in Maine on Tuesday.

The more contagious BA.2.12 and BA.2.12.1 omicron subvariants are fueling increases in the Northeast, officials said.

The seven-day rolling average of daily new cases in Maine has risen over the past two weeks from 274 new cases per day on April 18 to 638 new cases per day on May 2.

About three-quarters of the state is fully vaccinated against COVID-19, but the rate of vaccination has slowed.