UPI – January 28, 2021
Jan. 28 (UPI) — Health officials in South Carolina announced Thursday that they have identified two cases of a COVID-19 variant that emerged recently in South Africa — which are the first confirmed cases of the mutated virus in the United States.
Federal officials identified the B.1.351 variant in adults from the state’s Lowcountry and Pee Dee regions, according to South Carolina’s Department of Health and Environmental Control.
The patients have not traveled internationally and did not know each other, the department said.
“The arrival of the SARS-CoV-2 variant in our state is an important reminder to all South Carolinians that the fight against this deadly virus is far from over,” interim DHEC Public Health Director Dr. Brannon Traxler said in a statement.
“While more COVID-19 vaccines are on the way, supplies are still limited. Every one of us must recommit to the fight by recognizing that we are all on the front lines now. We are all in this together.”
New variants first reported in Britain and South Africa are said to be more transmissible, but most experts have said the available vaccines from Pfizer and Moderna should also be effective against the mutated strains.
“At this time, there’s no evidence to suggest that the B.1.351 variant causes more severe illness,” the department added.