The US state of Maryland reported multiple cases of the South African variant of the coronavirus this Saturday, after two other cases were reported in South Carolina on Thursday.
Marylan Governor Larry Hogan explained that “this is an adult living in the Baltimore Metropolitan Area.” “He has not traveled abroad, so it is likely that there is community transmission. A trace is being done to ensure that every contact is quickly identified, quarantined and tested,” he said, quoted as saying by CNN.
Two cases have been discovered in South Carolina where patients have not recently traveled abroad and are unrelated to each other, the State Department of Health reports.
South Carolina Public Health Director Brannon Traxler explained to the press that the tests were conducted in early January and that “they are no longer contagious.” “It takes time to sequence,” he said, referring to the elapsed time.
Variant B.1.351 is more infectious than the original and may be resistant to antibodies generated by patients who have already overcome COVID-19. However, it is believed that vaccines are still effective. So far it has been identified in about thirty countries.