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DENVER (AP) – Colorado’s chief medical officer has said two highly contagious strains of COVID-19, harder to detect and more resistant to treatment, could account for 30% of coronavirus cases in the state.
The strains, called the California variant and the British variant, can also cause more serious illnesses, says Dr Eric France.
Colorado Politics reports that France has said state officials are randomly testing hundreds of COVID-positive samples to find the variants. The state extrapolated the first results to arrive at the estimate of 30%.
The strains are named according to where they were first detected, in Great Britain and California, respectively. The British variant filled hospital beds in Italy and elsewhere. The California strain was detected in the fall and is now widespread in that state as well as New Mexico and Arizona.
Colorado enters a new phase of its vaccination plan on Friday in which people 50 and older, restaurant workers and people 16 and older with underlying health conditions are eligible for vaccines .
For most people, the new coronavirus causes mild to moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough, that go away within two to three weeks. For some – especially the elderly and people with existing health problems – it can cause more serious illnesses, including pneumonia and death.
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