The rapidly spreading coronavirus strain first identified in the UK has now reached Canada and Japan, after cases have emerged in some European counties.
Health officials in Canada said a couple in Ontario were found infected with the coronavirus variant, however, they had no history of travel or high-risk contacts.
The couple were placed in isolation and the provincial government said in a press release that there is no evidence to suggest that vaccines approved by Health Canada will be less effective against the new variant.
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Meanwhile, Japan is preventing all non-resident foreigners from entering as a precaution against the new variant. The Foreign Ministry said the ban on entry will begin on Monday and last until January 31.
People wearing face masks to help stem the spread of coronavirus walk on Tokyo’s Aoyama shopping street on Sunday, December 27, 2020. Japan is preventing all non-resident foreigners from entering as a precaution against a potentially new variant of the coronavirus contagious disease that has spread across Britain. The Foreign Ministry says the ban on entry will begin on Monday and will last until January 31. (Yuka Ando / Kyodo News via AP)
Last week, the country banned non-resident foreigners from Britain and South Africa after confirming the new variant on seven people in the past two days – five from Britain tested positive at airports and two in Tokyo.
Japan is also lifting the 14-day quarantine exemption for Japanese citizens and foreigners residing in a short-term program that began in November. Participants must now carry proof of a negative test 72 hours before departure to Japan and isolate themselves for two weeks after arrival.
Several European countries – including Spain, Switzerland, Sweden and France – have reported infections related to people who recently arrived from the UK
Nurse Idoia Crespo prepares a Coronavirus vaccine in a nursing home in L’Hospitalet de Llobregat in Barcelona, Spain, on Sunday, December 27, 2020. The first shipments of vaccines against the coronavirus developed by BioNTech and Pfizer arrived in the European Union, authorities began vaccinating the most vulnerable people in a coordinated effort on Sunday. (AP Photo / Emilio Morenatti)
In Spain, four cases were confirmed in Madrid. None of the patients, all traveling from the UK, were seriously ill.
Switzerland, which kept its ski slopes open to tourism during winter holidays, has identified three cases – two of which are British citizens who were among the thousands of British tourists who arrived in recent weeks.
In Sweden, a traveler who has returned from the UK is isolating himself after being diagnosed with the new strain.
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The variant, dubbed VUI-202012/01, worries experts because it is believed to be up to 70% more transmissible. The news of the variant caused travel restrictions worldwide, including the United States.
Scientists are investigating whether the new strain is behind the rise in new cases of coronavirus in California. On Christmas Eve, the state has exceeded more than 2 million cases of COVID-19 since the pandemic began.
Nurse prepares dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine at Santa Maria hospital in Lisbon, Sunday, December 27, 2020. Portugal started the vaccination program on Sunday with medical teams from reference hospitals across the country receiving the first vaccines . (AP Photo / Armando Franca)
“It happened in a devastating and fast way. Everyone I talked to said that this acceleration was beyond any model and any expectation, so people say ‘What broke?’ and I have to think that it’s part of the tension that existed, “Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti said in an interview with The Los Angeles Times.
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The United States, starting on Monday, will require that all airline passengers arriving from Britain test negative for the coronavirus 72 hours after departure.
The new rule will apply to both Americans and foreign citizens and will require passengers to present proof of a negative result in a genetic test, known as a PCR, or antigen test.
“This additional testing requirement will strengthen our protection of the American public to improve their health and safety and ensure responsible international travel,” the Center for Disease Control and Prevention said in a statement.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.