A new variant of the coronavirus in Great Britain, which researchers say is spreading 70% more efficiently, makes Prime Minister Boris Johnson to close many parts of the country for Christmas.
The new strain of COVID-19 is no more deadly than the original virus, nor does it appear to make people sick. But it is spreading more easily, and this has terrified the British government in virtually canceling Christmas.
Researchers believe the vaccine developed by Pfizer will continue to be effective, but scientists are struggling to confirm this.
CNN:
According to Whitty, the new variant is responsible for 60% of infections in London, which have almost doubled in the last week.
Earlier, he said that “urgent work” was being done to determine whether the new strain, spread in the south-east of England, could cause a higher mortality rate.
“There is no current evidence to suggest that the new strain causes a higher mortality rate or that it affects vaccines and treatments, although urgent work is being done to confirm this,” Whitty said in a statement.
There does not appear to be any widespread fatigue of the virus, as in America. But given these restrictions, expect resistance soon.
NBCNews:
As a result, non-essential shops, gyms, cinemas, hairdressers and bowling alleys will be forced to close for two weeks, while people will be limited to meeting another person from another household in a space. outdoor public.
A “bubble” policy – allowing up to three households to meet during the holiday season – will be severely curtailed and applied only on Christmas Day, Johnson said.
He added that he “bitterly regrets” the changes, but insisted that the changes are “necessary”.
Don’t be surprised if this number – the 70% faster spread of the virus – is revised downwards. This estimate is based on “preliminary modeling” which involves only a few thousand cases. Obviously, the more data you have, the more accurate your model is. We’ll see how quickly the new version spreads in a month or two.
In the meantime, one might ask why does this make a difference? If the vaccine is still effective against it (it has not yet been proven) and the mortality rate is not higher, why worry?
The faster the coronavirus spreads, the more people will get sick. More patients means that more hospital beds will be needed. And while the percentage of seriously ill people is likely to remain stable, more infections means more seriously ill and dead.
So Johnson felt he had to act. Closing the country for a few weeks will not help. The new variant will still be present at the end of the lock. This is a lesson I learned here from the spring blockages. And once the virus begins to infect humans again, we begin the same cycle as before: reopening, followed by restrictions, followed by relaxed restrictions, followed by another blockage.
The vaccine won’t be here any time soon.