JACKSON, Wyo. – A variant of COVID-19, which sent Britain to another blockade last month, was discovered in Jackson Hole. The Wyoming Department of Health (WDH) confirmed the state’s first case of the “UK variant”, or B.1.1.7 variant of COVID-19, today, 16 January. The variant was identified in an adult male from Teton County.
While further investigations are ongoing, early information suggests that exposure to the virus variant occurred locally.
Dr. Alexia Harrist, state health officer and WDH epidemiologist, said the department is not surprised and expects the variant to be found in Wyoming at some point.
The strain is a mutation of the common COVID-19 virus that has spread around the world. Viruses naturally evolve as they spread from person to person, which is why new flu vaccines are developed each year.
“It is not uncommon for variants to appear with viruses and this has happened during this pandemic with COVID-19,” said Harrist. “However, this strain is more transmissible than previous variants of COVID-19 and this is a serious concern.”
Harrist noted that the UK variant does not appear to cause more serious illness. “But a variant that spreads more easily among people means that the number of infections can increase, causing more diseases, hospitalizations and deaths,” she said. “This is something that nobody wants.”
“So it is still very important for Wyoming residents to wear masks, practice physical distance and avoid large meetings, and stay home when they are sick, unless they seek medical attention,” said Harrist.
“We also don’t want people to avoid the test if they have been exposed or have symptoms that could be COVID-19,” said Harrist. In addition to local testing options, WDH offers free COVID-19 tests at home through Vault Health. These tests are available to Wyoming residents at no charge; insurance is not necessary.
The currently authorized COVID-19 vaccines are believed to be effective against the United Kingdom variant strain. Information on the distribution of the vaccine in Wyoming can be found here.
While Wyoming’s initial case of variant B.1.1.7 COVID-19 was discovered in a commercial health laboratory, the Wyoming Public Health Laboratory (WPHL) is also monitoring samples for this and other variants of COVID-19. WPHL is part of the WDH.
There are 273 active cases of covid-19 on January 15 in Teton County.