The U.S. may have its own version of a more transmissible coronavirus that could help fuel the already aggressive spread of the virus, the White House Coronavirus Task Force said in its latest report this week.
Reports sent to the states by the task force on January 3 warned of the possibility of a ‘US variant’ of Covid-19.
‘This autumn / winter boom was almost twice the increase in cases such as spring and summer. “This acceleration suggests that there may be an American variant that has developed here, in addition to the British variant that is already spreading in our communities and which is 50% more transmissible,” CNN’s reports said.
The task force called for “aggressive mitigation … to be consistent with a much more aggressive virus.”
The task force should include the use of face masks, and the vaccination of as many people as possible immediately.
“Without uniform implementation of effective face masking (two or three layers and well-fitting) and strict social removal, epidemics can quickly worsen as these variants spread and become predominant.”
The US has been keeping an eye on cases of a variant that was first identified in the UK and which seems to be more easily transmitted.
The pandemic continues to rage as the country draws attention to the uprising at the US Capitol and the ratification of the election of President Bide’s victory, and the task force continued to warn states of ‘aggressive community dispersal’ after the holiday period.
‘The United States remains at a high level of 140-150,000 confirmed and suspected COVID surveys per week and 120-125,000 total inpatients. “Significant continued decline, from California across the Sunbelt and into the Southeast, Mid-Atlantic and Northeast countries, despite the low tests during the holidays, indicates an aggressive spread of the community,” the task force said.
The task force reports also called for the establishment of polyclinic monoclonal antibody treatment infusion sites that are immediately available to save lives.
And as the country struggles to immunize Americans quickly, reports say vaccines must now be ‘in the arms’.
“Do not delay the rapid vaccination of persons over 65 and vulnerable to serious diseases; recommends creating high-throughput vaccination sites with the help of EMT staff to monitor for possible anaphylaxis and full utilization of nursing students. No vaccines may be in freezers, but should rather be placed in the arms now; active and aggressive vaccination in the light of this boom would save lives, ”the reports read.
This week, California is the state with the most new cases per 100,000 population, followed by Arizona, Kansas, Tennessee, Rhode Island, Utah, Arkansas, West Virginia, Georgia and Massachusetts in the top 10.
Test positivity, an indication of increasing cases, is highest in Oklahoma, followed by Nevada, Arizona, Utah, Idaho, Virginia, Tennessee, Georgia, South Carolina and Alabama.
Arkansas has the most hospital admissions per 100 beds, followed by Arizona, Maryland, Oklahoma, Georgia, Kentucky, California, District of Columbia, South Carolina and New Mexico.
And Kansas has the most new deaths per 100,000 population, followed by Wyoming, Pennsylvania, New Mexico, Arkansas, Indiana, Mississippi, Arizona, Tennessee and Rhode Island.