The most contagious variant of the coronavirus has been found in Southern California, Gov. Gavin Newsom
Gavin NewsomBeverly Hills restaurant apologizes for distributing invitations to “clandestine” dinners amid the state ban. (D) said Wednesday.
Newsom made the announcement at the beginning of a live broadcast with Anthony Fauci
Anthony FauciBiden offers a sober warning about the future of the Fauci coronavirus: ‘I didn’t’ thought about running for office Fauci: You ‘have to assume’ that the pandemic will get worse MORE, the government’s top infectious disease expert, and did not provide details about the case other than saying it is in Southern California.
The development comes after Colorado officials on Tuesday announced the first confirmed American case of the new variant, which was first identified in the UK.
Colorado announced a confirmed case and a possible case, meaning that California could have the third known case in the U.S.
Officials said at a news conference on Wednesday that the case of the new variant in California is a 30-year-old man in San Diego County with no travel history, again indicating that the variant is spreading to some degree in the community. The man is not hospitalized and contact tracking is in progress. There was domestic contact, officials said.
“Since there is no travel history, we believe this is not an isolated case in San Diego County,” said county supervisor Nathan Fletcher.
Fauci said in a conversation with Newsom that the new case is not a surprise and that he expects additional cases of the new variant to be reported soon in other states as well.
“I’m not surprised that you have a case and probably more cases in California, and we will probably see reports from other states,” he said.
Fauci said that although the new variant appears to be more transmissible, it does not appear to cause more serious illness or to prevent vaccine protection.
“There is no indication that it increases virulence,” said Fauci, noting that the National Institutes of Health and other laboratories are studying closely for more information.
The announcement was made at a time when southern California was hit particularly hard by the virus and hospitals face tremendous tension.
Health officials are encouraging people to take the same precautions against the new variant of the virus, including wearing masks, avoiding internal meetings with other families, keeping their distance and washing their hands.
Updated at 6:21 pm