Massachusetts is now responsible for about a quarter of the cases of the coronavirus P.1 variant detected in the United States, exceeding 55 in Florida with 58. According to data compiled by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the total of the State of the Bay is currently the highest in the US
A data review conducted by the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard tracked the sudden increase in variant cases in clusters on Cape Cod. The state announced the first case of variant P.1, which was originally detected in Brazil and is more transmissible than the original strain, on March 16, and said it was identified in a woman in Barnstable County in her 30s. . She tested positive for the virus for the first time in late February, and at the time, officials said there was no information available about her travel or illness history.
As in other parts of the USA, new cases are being caused by younger populations than those recorded previously. In the past two weeks, those aged 0-19 in Massachusetts have accounted for 6,401 new cases, and those aged 20-29 have seen 5,378 cases, while those aged 70-79 have seen 657 new cases.
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Officials previously attributed the trend to high vaccination rates among the elderly, while younger populations are about to become eligible or have not yet received their first injection. Children under 16 have yet to see an approved COVID-19 vaccine for them, although several trials are underway.
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In Massachusetts, Bruce Murphy, health director for the city of Yarmouth, said the spread is at least partly attributed to “coronavirus fatigue”.
“They are letting their guard down,” Murphy told the Cape Cod Times, adding that contract trackers found spread due to hitchhikers, dinners and sleepovers. As a result of the sudden increase, he told the news agency that there should be more vaccines targeted at critical points on Cape Cod.
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Massachusetts also saw at least 712 cases of variant B.1.1.7, which was initially detected in the United Kingdom