New COVID-19 strain could make pandemic worse—CDC

The new strain of the coronavirus has given health officials more headaches. According to the CDC, this new variant looks deadlier than expected.

New COVID-19 strain, more infectious and deadly

According to the Center for disease control, the recent variant of the coronavirus seems more dangerous and could make infections worse. This means the US government must take all necessary precautions to protect its citizens.

This strain which was first identified in the UK and known as B. 1.1.7 has been discovered in the US too and research shows that it spreads at an alarming rate than previously thought. What this implies is that people need to make a conscious effort to wear face shields/masks, avoid large gatherings, and follow social distancing rules.

“ What this means is that it is going to be more difficult to control how this strain travels. All protocols will have to be followed judiciously and this includes ongoing vaccinations“ Gregory Armstrong, a director of Molecule Detection at CDC said.

“ There is a plethora of evidence which indicates that this new B. 1.1.7 strain is easily transmitted than other COVID-19 variants”.

“ The COVID-19 strain has the potential to increase the infection rates among Americans. Also, there are viable efforts to vaccinate people, even if it is at a reduced rate.“ He concluded.

Vaccinations to offer succor to US citizens

Also, increased vaccinations will be the best solution to protect the general populace against this new coronavirus variant. Also, there is no evidence to show that homegrown strains are increasing the rate of infections in the US.

The COVID-19 virus has infected many US citizens compared to any other nation in the world. Also, they have suffered more fatalities than others. According to figures gotten from Johns Hopkins University, about 25 million Americans have been infected with the virus and killed about 400, 000.

This new B. 1.1.7 strain seems to target human cells which in turn makes it easy for transmission. There are more than 15 US states who have patients with the new variant, but CDC believes it has spread to other states.