COVID-19 Variety Strains Raising Wisconsin Case
Health officials said it would only be a few weeks before the British variant became the dominant tribe in Wisconsin.
MILWAUKEE – In the race against COVID-19, a new opponent gets steam in Wisconsin.
More people are being vaccinated, but Wisconsin health officials say the state is also seeing an increase in cases.
Health officials said it was only a few weeks before the B.1.1.7 variant – also known as the British variant – became the dominant strain in Wisconsin. The CDC director said on Wednesday that B.1.1.7 is already the dominant tribe nationally.
“The CDC has identified five variants of concern,” said Dr. Ryan Westergaard, chief medical officer at the Wisconsin DHS Bureau of Communicable Diseases, said. “All five of these tribes are currently in Wisconsin.”
Officials said more contagious and more dangerous strains of the coronavirus are contributing to a 100% increase in the state’s average number of seven-day cases over the past month.
Westergaard says the cases are increasing the fastest among children.
“We are in a new phase of the epidemic that is clearly worse than it was before, and it is spreading among young people who are driving the change and the curve,” Westergaard said.
Despite the rise, hospitalizations remained low. Westergaard said this is an indication that the vaccine is working.
While people aged 65 and older are at greatest risk of getting serious diseases from the virus, more than 75% of the elderly got at least their first chance.
“We need to feel good about the extent to which we have protected our older Wisconsin residents,” Westergaard said.
Wisconsin DHS COVID-19 vaccine, variant V&A
Officials at the Wisconsin Department of Health Services answered questions and provided information on COVID-19 – including vaccinations and variety strains.
Julie Willems Van Dijk, the DHS deputy secretary, reminded residents on Thursday that the only way to win the race is with both the vaccine and the continued vigilance.
“There may no longer be a mandate for the whole mask, but that does not diminish the need for everyone to act as if there is a mask mandate,” said Willems Van Dijk.
Experts are still looking at the data to determine why the prevalence of variants is so large among children. According to them, a number of factors may play a role, including the reopening of schools and the resumption of spring sports.
However, children under the age of 16 are not yet eligible for the vaccine.
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