Colorado confirms first cases of COVID variant that easily reinfect survivors

Colorado has reported its first two cases of a COVID-19 variant that could prove that people who already had the virus were re-infected.

The P.1 variant was first found in Brazil and drove the country’s health system to the breaking point, even in areas where many people already had the virus and were presumably immune. Other South American countries are also struggling with new waves of the virus, mainly driven by P.1.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention informed Colorado that two Boulder County residents tested positive for the P.1 variant. The Department of Public Health and the Environment in Colorado said Tuesday that they are investigating whether they have traveled to other states or countries where the variant is spreading and trying to find people who could be exposed. The health department did not say whether the two people live in the same household and whether they have symptoms.

The CDC reported 289 cases of P.1 in 25 states. Research from Brazil suggests that the variant is more contagious and more deadly, although it is not certain.

Colorado selects a sample of all positive COVID-19 tests for complete genetic sequence. While sampling can give an idea of ​​what variants are circulating and how wide they are, it cannot tell health officials exactly how many cases occur in the community.

So far, Colorado has found 1,268 cases linked to ‘variants of concern’ – versions of the virus that are more contagious, cause serious illness or are more difficult to identify and destroy the immune system. Most are caused by variants first identified in California and the United Kingdom, both of which are more contagious than the version that first landed in Colorado.