New strains of coronavirus are likely already spreading in the US, CDC says

ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. – Recent reports suggest that new strains of the coronavirus have been detected in other parts of the world, including Great Britain and South Africa.

Health experts in the UK and US said the species appears to be easier to infect than others, but there is no evidence yet that it is more deadly.

Some countries have introduced new travel restrictions in an effort to prevent the spread of the virus variants that health experts say seem to infect more easily than others.

The new variant, known as 501.V2, has not been detected in the US, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, but the viruses have only been sequenced from about 51,000 of the 17 million infections in the US. most sequences with 125,000, according to the CDC.

The CDC issued advice on Tuesday about the implications of the variant.

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“Continued travel between the UK and the US, as well as the high prevalence of this variant among current UK infections, increases the likelihood of imports,” the CDC said in a statement. “Given the small fraction of sequenced US infections, the variant could already be in the United States without being detected.”

To better monitor variants of the coronavirus in the US, the CDC will receive 10 samples every other week from each state for sequencing and further analysis in January.

On Monday, when the top Central Florida health official was asked if he thought travel from where the “new” species are reported should be temporarily halted, he said it is likely too late.

“While everyone is trying to stop how this new species can spread around the world, it could already be all over the world because it’s not a case that was identified yesterday … so this had happened,” said Dr. Raul Pino, with the Florida Department of Health-Orange County. “So it’s safe to assume it’s already spread to some places.”

Pino said at a news conference on Monday that the analysis that determined there was a mutation of the virus was done afterwards, so the virus variants have likely been around for a while.

And according to a recent report from The Associated Press, that’s normal.

Viruses naturally evolve as they move through the population, some more than others. It’s one reason we need a new flu shot every year.

New variants, or strains, of the virus that causes COVID-19 have been seen almost since it was first discovered in China about a year ago.

The good news, according to Pino, is that the new vaccines just approved by US health officials are also designed to protect those vaccinated from variants.

“It’s also important to know that the vaccines out there will continue to be effective against them,” Pino said.

Pino said it’s important to remember that the vaccine will not completely eliminate the coronavirus and the best way to protect yourself from any virus, including the flu, is to apply the CDC guidelines.

“We are actually pleasantly surprised how low our flu season has been this season. Although the flu is going up and down, we think that using the mask has also affected flu transmission, ”said Pino. “So it’s important to keep wearing your mask and don’t trust the vaccine just yet, because the vaccine, as we are going to implement it, will not have an immediate effect on the pandemic.”

According to the latest data, Orange County has reported 69,491 cases of COVID-19 and more than 700 deaths since the start of the pandemic.

According to Pino, more than 5,000 people have been vaccinated in Orange County with the Pfizer shot since Monday night. The county is preparing to receive 16,000 doses of the Moderna vaccine on Tuesday and plans to vaccinate ambulance personnel Dec. 26-31.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.