Kansas reports case of UK variant of COVID that could be deadlier

Kansas became the last US state to report a case of the British variant of COVID it is feared to be more deadly than past forms of the virus.

The Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE) said an investigation was initiated to determine how the person became infected with the variant called B.1.1.7., and whether others were exposed after a resident of Ellis County became ill .

Lee Norman, secretary of the KDHE, said in a statement, “This finding does not change our public health recommendations. We continue to encourage people to take appropriate precautions: follow isolation and quarantine recommendations, practice physical distancing and good hygiene. , wear masks, stay home in case of illness and get vaccinated if you are able to do so once supplies are sufficient. “

Since the first U.S. case of B.1.1.7 was reported in Colorado last December, 541 cases have been detected in 33 states, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Florida and California have the highest number of B.1.1.7 cases, 186 and 127 respectively. As shown in Statista chart below that was created on February 1, the United States is the country with the best known COVID case, with the UK in fourth position.

A CDC report released in mid-January said that a model of the variant’s trajectory suggested it had the potential to become the dominant form of the virus in the United States in March.

Spread comes amid concerns B.1.1.7 is not just more infectious than the previous types of COVID, but more deadly. Wednesday, the director of the CDC Rochelle Walensky Told MSNBC: “We know that some of the variants have increased transmissibility, there is growing evidence to suggest that some of the variants, variant B.1.1.7 may in fact … lead to increased mortality. “

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said last month: “[There is] some evidence that the new variant – the variant that was first identified in London and the South East – may be associated with a higher degree of mortalityY. “

He said the new variant was putting the country’s health system under “intense pressure”. The UK is currently under its third confinement pandemic, in part thanks to the emergence of the variant.

Patrick Vallance, the UK government’s chief scientific adviser, said at the time: ‘I want to stress that there is a lot of uncertainty around these numbers and we need more work to get a clear picture, but it is obviously of concern that this has an increase in mortality as well as an increase transmissibility. “

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