B117

11 Stories

COVID Variants Are On the Rise in Florida

They started surging after spring break

(Newser) - Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis lifted all local COVID-19 restrictions by executive order Monday—the same day that state health officials released worrying figures on the spread of coronavirus variants. The county-by-county statistics, released as part of a legal settlement with the Orlando Sentinel , show that more than 11,000 cases...

Study Finds Good News on UK Variant
Study Finds Good News
on UK Variant 
NEW STUDY
Apr 13, 2021 10:58 AM CDT

Study Finds Good News on UK Variant

B117 is not linked to more severe symptoms in hospitalized patients

(Newser) - The B117 coronavirus variant first detected in the UK—now the most common strain in the US —has been tentatively associated with high transmissibility, more severe illness, and a greater risk of death. But a new study appears to contradict some of those findings. Published Monday in Lancet Infectious ...

Michigan Governor, White House Are at a Vaccine Impasse
CDC to Michigan: 
Shut Down Again
Apr 13, 2021 12:03 AM CDT

CDC to Michigan: Shut Down Again

Gretchen Whitmer wants more vaccines; federal government has different ideas

(Newser) - Michigan's current coronavirus outbreak is the worst one in the US, and now the state's governor and the White House are in what CNN refers to as a "standoff" (or, if you prefer the New York Times ' take, "at loggerheads") over vaccines. Gov. Gretchen...

CDC's Prediction About B117 Variant Was Correct

The British COVID variant is now the dominant US strain

(Newser) - The CDC says its prediction earlier this year that the coronavirus strain first detected in Britain would become the dominant strain in the US is now reality. CDC Director Rochelle Walensky said Wednesday that the more infectious B117 variant is "now the most common lineage circulating in the United...

'The Game Has Changed. This Thing Is Not the 2020 Virus'

Melbourne, Australia, began its third lockdown on Friday

(Newser) - Melbourne, Australia’s second-largest city, will begin its third lockdown on Friday due to a rapidly spreading COVID-19 cluster. The five-day lockdown will be enforced across Victoria state to prevent the virus spreading from the state capital, Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews said. The Australian Open tennis tournament will be allowed...

US Records First Death From UK COVID Variant

CDC says monitoring of new strains is being stepped up

(Newser) - A month after the first case of the coronavirus variant detected in Britain was found in the US , the first known death from the strain has been reported. New Jersey state health commissioner Judy Persichilli said Wednesday that a man with no recent history of international travel had died from...

'Reassuring' News on Those COVID Variants
Pfizer Reports Good News
on Fast-Spreading Strains
new study
Jan 8, 2021 10:50 AM CST

Pfizer Reports Good News on Fast-Spreading Strains

Its vaccine appears to protect against them

(Newser) - New research suggests Pfizer's COVID vaccine can protect against a mutation found in two easier-to-spread strains that erupted in Britain and South Africa . The variants carry multiple mutations but share one in common that's believed to be the reason they are more contagious, per the AP . Called N501Y,...

It's Back to a Brutal Lockdown in England

Schools are closing for 6 weeks, and residents are told to stay home

(Newser) - It may be 2021, but it's about to feel like 2020 again in England, where Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Monday said that people must stay home again, as they were ordered to do in March. The new lockdown will last at least six weeks, and will see schools...

More Contagious COVID Variant Confirmed in 3rd State

B117 variant was found in Florida man in his 20s

(Newser) - And then there were three states (that we know of). Florida on Thursday became the third state to say it has identified a case of the new B117 strain of coronavirus. The more contagious variant was found to have infected a Martin County man in his 20s who has no...

US Confirms First Case of New COVID Strain

Colorado man has no recent travel history

(Newser) - The new and more infectious variant of the coronavirus first detected in Britain has now reached the US—but officials aren't sure how. Health authorities in Colorado say the B117 variant was found in an Elbert County man in his 20s with no recent history of traveling to Britain...

New COVID Variant Is 56% More Transmissible
New COVID Variant Is
56% More Transmissible
new study
Dec 24, 2020 6:24 AM CST

New COVID Variant Is 56% More Transmissible

Researchers say UK needs to increase vaccination rate tenfold due to B117

(Newser) - Britain has tightened lockdowns in response to a worrying new coronavirus variant—but unless it does more, 2021 may be an even deadlier year for the country than 2020, according to a new study . Researchers at the Center for Mathematical Modeling of Infectious Diseases at the London School of Hygiene...

11 Stories