CDC: U.K. coronavirus variant now dominant strain in U.S.

CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky.
(Image credit: Erin Clark-Pool/Getty Images)

The coronavirus variant first identified in the United Kingdom is now the most dominant strain in the United States, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced Wednesday.

Scientists have found that the variant, known as B.1.1.7, is 50 percent more contagious than other strains. In January, 76 cases of the variant had been identified in 10 states; it now accounts for roughly 27 percent of U.S. cases, with Florida, Michigan, and Tennessee seeing some of the highest case totals, The Washington Post reports.

Even with the U.S. vaccinating an average of 3 million people a day, CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky said, hospitalizations are up 2.7 percent over the previous week, with hospitals "seeing more and more younger adults — those in their 30s and 40s — admitted with severe disease." The daily number of new COVID-19 cases is also ticking up, but deaths are down by nearly 20 percent over the previous week.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

Some clusters of coronavirus cases have been linked to day care centers and youth sports, Walensky said, and she stressed the importance of people getting tested and going into isolation if infected.

To continue reading this article...
Continue reading this article and get limited website access each month.
Get unlimited website access, exclusive newsletters plus much more.
Cancel or pause at any time.
Already a subscriber to The Week?
Not sure which email you used for your subscription? Contact us
Catherine Garcia, The Week US

Catherine Garcia is night editor for TheWeek.com. Her writing and reporting has appeared in Entertainment Weekly and EW.com, The New York Times, The Book of Jezebel, and other publications. A Southern California native, Catherine is a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.