The United Kingdom reported the presence of a new variant of the coronavirus in mid-December, which has already spread to more than 30 countries, including the United States. Virus mutations are nothing out of the ordinary, but this new strain, called B.1.1.7, has caused serious concern among health officials thanks to its transmissibility. Now, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has weighed in on the future of the new variant in this country – and it is not good news. According to a new CDC report, the UK COVID strain may soon become the dominant COVID strain in the United States. Read more about the agency’s alarming forecast and for another look at what’s to come, Moderna’s CEO has just made this frightening prediction about COVID.
The CDC says the UK strain will become the dominant strain in two months.
The UK strain “has the potential to increase the path of the pandemic in the United States in the coming months,” said the CDC in a new study released on January 15. According to its modeled trajectory, this strain is expected to grow so quickly that it will become the dominant variant in the United States in March.
This trajectory means that efforts to increase vaccinations and mitigation measures – such as distance, masking and hand hygiene – are more important now than ever. The CDC says that instituting these measures “sooner or later” will make them more effective in delaying the initial spread of the new variant. And for the most up-to-date information, subscribe to our daily newsletter.
This is because the UK coronavirus strain spreads more easily.
People are more likely to contract COVID from those who have the UK strain, as the CDC reports that it is about 50% more transmissible than current variants. According to the report, there was a greater proportion of secondary contacts infected by the virus when exposed to index patients with the B.1.1.7 strain than when exposed to index patients with other variants of the coronavirus.
“Currently, there is no known difference in clinical outcomes associated with the described variants of SARS-CoV-2; however, a higher rate of transmission will lead to more cases, increasing the number of people in general who need clinical care, exacerbating the burden on an already strained health system, resulting in more deaths “, explains the CDC. And for another terrible prediction, the CDC has just issued this horrible COVID warning.
The CDC says that this strain has already been found in 12 states.
There have been 76 reported cases of the UK strain in the USA, as of January 13. According to a map that the CDC has been updating, these cases were found in 12 states: California, Florida, Minnesota, Colorado, New York, Indiana, Georgia, Texas, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Maryland and Wisconsin.
However, many employees believe that number is even higher. In a January 6 interview with Newsweek, Anthony Fauci, MD, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), said he believed this strain was “more widespread in the United States than we are currently detecting”. In fact, the governor of Maryland Larry Hogan said he was informed by the Director of the CDC Robert Redfield, MD, that the UK variant probably already existed in all states. And to learn more about the current state of the pandemic, see how bad the COVID outbreak is in your state.
The CDC also warns of other emerging COVID strains.
The CDC warned that this strain of the United Kingdom is not the only notable variant in circulation at the moment. The agency points to two other strains: B.1.351, first detected in South Africa, and B.1.1.28 (renamed P.1), which was detected in Brazilian travelers at a Tokyo airport. None of these variants were detected in the United States until January 12, notes the CDC. But there is still cause for concern. According to the CDC, these two variants “carry a constellation of genetic mutations”, which can not only increase transmissibility, but can also affect COVID test results and reduce people’s ability to develop protective antibodies. And for guidance on how to stay safe, the CDC issued an alert against these 4 facial covers.