Officials at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have rejected reports of a new strain of coronavirus in the United States based on what they say is speculation from the White House, a member of the coronavirus task force, Dr. Deborah Birx.
Birx suggested to other members of the working group that there could be a new strain in the United States based on the rapid rise in infections. This hypothesis was included in a summary sent to state governors.
“This autumn / winter increase was almost twice as high as the increase in cases such as spring and summer increases. This acceleration suggests that there may be a US version that has evolved here, in addition to the British version that is already spreading in communities and may be 50% more transmissible, “the New York Times report said.
“Aggressive mitigation must be used to match a more aggressive virus,” she added.
The Times reported that the CDC contacted Birx in an attempt to remove the suggestion from the summary sent to the governors. A source told the Times that the request was rejected, much to their frustration.
A CDC spokesman explained in an email to CNBC News why they thought Dr. Birx’s hypothesis was premature.
“Researchers have been monitoring US strains since the pandemic began, including 5,700 samples collected in November and December,” wrote Jason McDonald.
“So far, neither researchers nor analysts at the CDC have seen the emergence of a particular variant in the United States, as seen with the emergence of B.1.1.7 in the United Kingdom or B.1.351 in South Africa,” he added. he. .
The Times reported that they contacted Birx about the dispute, but received no response.
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