February 1 (UPI) – Iowa and South Carolina reported their first cases of the most contagious B.1.1.7 strain of COVID-19, health officials said.
Health officials in both states reported the discovery of cases of the variant first reported in Britain, which is believed to be twice as transmissible as the original coronavirus strain that emerged in late 2019.
On Monday, the Iowa Department of Public Health announced that it had reported three cases of the variant, two found in adults aged 18 to 40 and one aged 41 to 60.
“Viruses constantly change through mutations and new variants of a virus are expected to occur over time. Sometimes new variants appear and disappear. Other times, new variants appear and persist,” said Dr. Caitlin Pedati, state medical director and epidemiologist.
The South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control announced on Saturday that an adult from the state’s Lowcountry region who traveled internationally was the first known case.
The state had previously reported a case of variant B.1.351, first reported in South Africa.
“The arrival of the second variant of SARS-CoV-2 in our state is yet another important reminder to all South Carolinaians that the fight against this deadly virus is far from over,” said the DHEC Acting Director of Public Health, Dr. Brannon Traxler.
B.1.1.7 was discovered in 33 states and Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, told CNN on Monday that those who have tested positive for COVID-19 have a high rate of reinfection of the variants.
“If you become dominant, the experience of our colleagues in South Africa indicates that even if you have been infected with the original virus, there is a very high rate of reinfection to the point that the previous infection does not appear to protect you from infection, ” he said.