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Jan. 15 (UPI) – A more contagious strain of COVID-19 could become the “predominant” strain in the United States by March, potentially making it even more difficult to control the pandemic, researchers from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention predicted Friday.
The B.1.1.7 variant is believed to have first appeared in England in September, although it was not identified until last month.
It has been detected in more than 30 countries, with 76 cases in 10 U.S. states, CDC researchers said.
The rapid spread of the variant could slow the immunity of the population boosted by COVID-19 vaccines, two of which, from Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna, were approved for use in the United States last month, they said. .
“The increase … in transmission could threaten depleted health resources, require prolonged and more rigorous implementation of public health strategies, and increase the percentage of population immunity needed for pandemic control.” , wrote the researchers.
“Taking steps to reduce transmission now can reduce the potential impact of B.1.1.7 and leave a critical time to increase immunization coverage,” they said.
The researchers called for increased efforts to identify those infected with the new strain, through increased testing capacity and contact tracing initiatives.
Contact tracing is a public health strategy designed to locate people who may have been exposed to an infected person.
Predictions for the future spread of the B.1.1.7 strain in the United States are based on computer modeling, CDC researchers said.
This modeling takes into account how other strains of the virus have already spread across the country, as well as the number of current cases and potential transmission, they said.
Since the new strain spreads much faster than other versions of COVID-19, more and more cases are likely to emerge, especially if mitigation strategies such as mask wear and social distancing are not effectively implemented, the researchers say.
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