New York – New York has joined a growing list of more than a dozen states that have confirmed at least one case of a worrisome variant of the coronavirus that was first found in Brazil.
The variant of concern, known as P.1, is highly contagious and in some cases has reinfected people who had already recovered from the coronavirus. About 48 cases of the variant have been reported in at least 16 states, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. It is now found in at least 25 other countries.
Scientists hope that the variants will soon become the main source of infection in the United States. The country has been racing to vaccinate as many people as possible before that happens, even as some states are loosening lockdown restrictions.
Florida has recorded 21 cases of the P.1 variant, the most of any state, according to the latest CDC data. At least 49 states and Puerto Rico have reported around 5,500 cases of the variant first identified in Britain, which could soon be the dominant form of the virus in the United States. Another 180 cases of a variant first found in South Africa have also been reported.
New York Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo announced Saturday that the state’s first case of P.1 was identified by scientists at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City in a Brooklyn resident in his 90s with no travel history.
“The detection of the Brazilian variant here in New York further underscores the importance of taking all appropriate measures to continue to protect your health,” Cuomo said in a statement.
Scientists are concerned about the P.1 variant because it shares many mutations with the variant that is now dominant in South Africa, known as B.1.351. The vaccines made by Moderna and Pfizer still protect against that variant, but are slightly less effective. The vaccines are expected to work similarly against P.1.
The pace of vaccinations has accelerated in the United States. Approximately 79.4 million people have received at least one dose of the vaccine as of Saturday, the CDC said. In New York, at least 25 percent of the population has received at least one dose.
The P.1 variant was first reported in Japan in December, in four people who had traveled from Brazil. It quickly became dominant in Manaus, the largest city in the country’s Amazon region, and spread to other cities in South America. He arrived in the United States in January, appearing first in Minnesota.
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