Fauci: the UK variant may be responsible for 30% of coronavirus infections in the USA

Fauci: the UK variant may be responsible for 30% of coronavirus infections in the USA

by

The coronavirus variant first discovered in the UK could be responsible for up to 30% of new COVID infections in the U.S., NIAID director Anthony Fauci said during a meeting at the White House about the virus on Friday.

Why does it matter: The variant, called B.1.1.7, has been detected across the United States and studies have suggested that it appears to spread more easily than the original strain of the virus.

Context: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warned in January that variant B.1.1.7 could become the dominant strain of the virus in the United States this month.

  • The news comes after several states across the country have relaxed or eased their restrictions on coronavirus.

What is he saying: “This variant, as you know, is increasingly dominant in our own country,” said Fauci. “We are in a position now where we have a plateau in about 53,000 cases a day.”

  • “The concern is that across the country there are a number of states, cities and regions that are retreating in some of the mitigation methods that we have been talking about: the withdrawal of mask mandates, the retreat to essentially non-public health measures being implemented “he added.
  • Fauci said the best way to combat the variant is to vaccinate as many people as quickly as possible, while maintaining public health measures to prevent the spread of the virus.

The big picture: Several European countries are currently managing a wave of cases as a result of variants.

  • Italy entered another blockade this week that is expected to last at least until Easter weekend.
  • Regions across France, including Paris, went into a month-long block on Friday.
  • German Health Minister Jens Spahn warned on Friday that cases of COVID-19 are growing at an “exponential rate” in the country and there may be no doses of vaccine available to prevent a third wave.

Michael Osterholm, director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota, said last week that he believes the United States may face another increase in variant B.1.1.7.

.Source