An epidemiologist on Thursday compared the highly contagious variant of the coronavirus in the UK to a “Category 5 hurricane” overflowing the coast as the strain has spread to more than half of the US, infecting more than 500 in the north. -American and causing two known deaths.
“It will take much more than vaccination to keep this variant at bay and not potentially have a significant increase just in the coming weeks,” said epidemiologist Michael Osterholm, director of the Center for Infectious Diseases Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota said CNN’s “New Day.”
“I think my colleagues would agree that this variant of the United Kingdom, which is now beginning to circulate much more widely in the United States, is a huge challenge. And that, in a few weeks, we could see cases increase dramatically, ”Osterholm added.
According to the latest data from the Federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, variant COVID-19, known as B.1.1.7, has been detected in 33 U.S. states.
There were 541 cases of the British variant reported nationwide, including 186 cases in Florida, 127 cases in California, 42 cases in New York and 22 cases in Michigan, according to the data.
The variant was first detected in the United States in Colorado in late December.
Since then, two Americans have died after contracting the mutated virus: an Alabama father and a person in New Jersey who state health officials said had “significant underlying health conditions.”
The UK first identified the variant in the autumn of last year, the CDC said. It was found to spread more easily and quickly than other variants.
Last month, health experts in the UK reported that the variant could be associated with a higher risk of death compared to other variant viruses, but the CDC says more studies are needed to confirm this finding.
A total of 73 countries around the world have so far detected the UK variant, including the Netherlands, Spain, France, Ireland, Belgium, Switzerland and Italy, according to the monitoring website, cov-lineages.org.
In addition, two other variants of the coronavirus, one known as B.1.351, which first emerged in South Africa, and another known as P.1, which was first identified in Brazil, have been circulating worldwide, including the United States.
According to the CDC, three cases of South African strains and two of the Brazilian variant in the US have been reported so far.
The CDC says antibodies generated by vaccination with authorized COVID-19 vaccines recognize variants.
The nation’s leading infectious disease expert, Dr Anthony Fauci, has said he believes current coronavirus vaccines will protect against the UK variant.
“What is most formidable and troubling is the South African variant,” Fauci said last week in a group of public health experts.
“The bottom line is that we take these mutations very seriously,” Fauci said. “The UK variant is much less worrying. We need to be prepared to improve vaccines. ”