The US is playing a “whole new ball game” in terms of controlling the coronavirus as variants spread across the country, Michael Osterholm, director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota, told CBS News Friday.
Why it matters: Osterholm said the US could be dealing with a new wave of the B.1.1.7 variant, which was first identified in the UK and has since been detected across the US. Multiple studies have suggested that it is likely to spread more easily than the original strain of the virus.
What they say: “We are, I think at the moment, in the eye of a hurricane regarding the good news, the vaccine is coming, but the big challenge [is] with this new variant arriving here from Europe, ”Osterholm told CBS News.
- “But otherwise it’s all about the variants and the vaccine, and that will determine where we will be next year, the year after and the year after that.”
- Osterholm predicted that between now and time the US could vaccinate a greater proportion of the population “we will see this B.1.1.7 rise.”
The big picture: His warning comes as multiple states across the country relax or roll back their coronavirus restrictions.
Go deeper: The new coronavirus peak in Europe is a warning for the US.