Florida continues to surpass the rest of the country with new mutant COVID-19 cases

ORLANDO, Fla. Florida continues to lead the country in the number of documented COVID-19 variant cases linked to the UK, with almost 380 cases of the B.1.1.7 variant, according to the latest information from the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention.

Now, with 379 documented cases, the Sunshine State has twice as many cases in the United Kingdom as California, which has 189 Sunday nights, according to the CDC database. Texas has 49 cases, both Illinois and North Carolina have 23 cases each and Maryland has documented 22.

The number of mutant cases is expected to increase as more laboratories for virus samples and follow-up variants are set up.

Florida has tripled the number of UK variants in less than a month. Three weeks ago, Florida reported 125 cases in the UK.

The CDC updates its database three days a week at 7 p.m., but the agency says it probably does not contain all of the data.

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‘The cases identified above are based on a sample of SARS-CoV-2 positive samples and do not represent the total number of B.1.1.7, B.1.351 and P.1 lineage cases that may occur in the United States does not spread. States and may not correspond to numbers reported by states, territories, tribes and local officials, ”reads an indemnity below the map.

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The virus variants first detected in Brazil, P.1 and South Africa, B.1.351, were also reported in the USA, but in much fewer numbers. Only 16 cases of the Brazilian variant have been documented and so far only three cases of the South African variant have been reported in the USA.

The British variant is more contagious and is thought to be more lethal than the original, while the vaccine in South Africa may make the vaccines somewhat less effective. The ultimate fear is that there may eventually be a variant that is resistant to existing vaccines and treatments.

However, the true dimensions of the problem in the US are not clear due to the relatively low level of sequence.

The mutant cases have probably been here all along and have multiplied, but the CDC began identifying and tracing the variants late last year. The CDC rushed to track down the variant after falling behind.

Viruses are constantly mutating. To anticipate the threat, scientists analyze samples and monitor them for mutations that could make the coronavirus more contagious or more deadly.

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Less than 1% of positive samples in the US are sequentially determined to determine if they have worrying mutations. Other countries are doing better – Britain follows around 10% – which means they can see threats coming at them faster. This gives them a greater opportunity to delay or stop the problem, whether through more targeted contact detection, possible adjustments to the vaccine or public warnings.

After the slow start, public health laboratories in at least 33 states are now conducting genetic analyzes to identify emerging coronavirus variants. Other states have partnered with university or private laboratories to perform the work. According to the Association of Public Health Laboratories, North Dakota, which began sequencing in early February, was the latest work.

According to the CDC, a minimum of 5,000 to 10,000 samples must be analyzed weekly in the U.S. to adequately monitor variants, said Gregory Armstrong, who oversees the agency’s advanced molecular detection work. And it is only now that the country is reaching that level, he acknowledged.

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President Joe Biden, who inherited the set-up from the Trump administration, proposes a $ 1.9 billion COVID-19 aid package that increases federal spending on the order of the virus, although the amount is not detailed and others details have yet to be worked out. out.

‘We are 43rd in the world in genomic order. Completely unacceptable, “said Jeff Zients, coordinator of the coronavirus response in the White House.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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