Expert warns U.S. citizens to brace for deadly UK COVID-19 strain

A prominent infectious disease expert has recently predicted that a dominant and more deadly UK strain of the coronavirus is expected to drastically hit the U.S. in coming days. This forecast came amid a rapid rise in the number of infected people with COVID-19 across the country.

Most recently, the number of confirmed cases crossed the 25 million mark, with the death cases steadily advancing to reach half a million. As per current records, the disease has reportedly claimed the lives of more than 440,000 people in total in the country, which is by far the highest across the globe.

Michael Osterholm, an Epidemiologist who served on the transition coronavirus advisory board of Joe Biden following his electoral victory in the 2020 election, and Director at the University of Minnesota’s center for infectious disease research & policy, warned the U.S. citizens to brace for the accelerated transmission rate due to the virulent COVID-19 strain in spring.

Dr. Osterholm further added that the surge in the new variant, which was first discovered in England, is expected to occur over the next 6-14 weeks. Due to this, he urged Biden’s administration to rapidly launch mitigation plans and vaccinate as many U.S. people as possible, at least with the 1^st dose, especially elderly people over 65 years of age, to stave off the worst exacerbation caused by the variant amid the ongoing crisis.

In addition, Boris Johnson, the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, warned that the new variant is likely to be 30% more infectious and deadly as compared to the original virus. It was initially found in the U.S. at the end of December 2020. However, it is perceived to have been present in the country as early as October.

According to the CDC (Centers for Disease Control & Prevention), out of the 50 million vaccine doses being distributed in the U.S., over 30 million have been administered to the population.

Source credit: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2021/jan/31/us-covid-uk-variant-strain-spread