New York reports 1st case of U.K. coronavirus variant

New York has become the latest U.S. state to identify a case of the more contagious COVID-19 variant.

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) on Monday announced that a case of the coronavirus variant that was first reported in the United Kingdom has been confirmed in the state, with a person from Saratoga County testing positive.

"The individual had no known travel history," Cuomo said.

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Cases of this new COVID-19 variant were previously confirmed in Colorado, California, and Florida, ABC News reports. It has also been reported in numerous countries including France, Germany, Italy, and Spain, NPR reports.

On Monday, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced that England would be going into a national lockdown again amid the spread of this COVID-19 variant, which he noted scientists say is "between 50 and 70 percent more transmissible." Experts have said it doesn't seem to be deadlier, however, CNBC notes.

"It's been both frustrating and alarming to see the speed with which the new variant is spreading," Johnson said.

Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation's top infectious disease expert, previously told NBC's Today that "it was inevitable" that the coronavirus variant would be identified in the United States and warned, "You're going to be hearing about reports from other states and more cases in the states that have already reported."