A paramedic prepares vaccination doses for Covid-19 at a Los Angeles fire department. | Mario Tama / Getty Images
The most infectious variant of the coronavirus first identified in South Africa emerged in California for the first time, Governor Gavin Newsom said on Wednesday.
The state identified two cases of the variant, Newsom said: one in Alameda County and one in Santa Clara County, both forming part of the greater San Francisco Bay area.
South Carolina was the first state to detect a case of the variant first identified in South Africa in late January. Since then, it has also been detected in Virginia, Maryland and Texas.
Why it matters: This variant spreads more easily than previous strains of the virus, presenting additional danger. The researchers are still evaluating the effectiveness of existing vaccines in treating the variant.
This could undermine California’s efforts to keep the pandemic in check, even though transmission rates and the number of hospitalizations decrease and the state makes gradual progress in vaccinating more people. The state also identified 159 more cases of a variant first identified in the UK in California and more than 1,000 cases of West Coast variants.
“The issue of mutations is what matters most,” said Newsom.