British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Friday that there’s “some evidence” that the COVID-19 variant first discovered in the United Kingdom could be more deadly than the original strain.
“We’ve been informed today that in addition to spreading more quickly, it also now appears that there is some evidence that the new variant, which was first identified in London and in the southeast, may be associated with a higher degree of mortality,” Johnson said at a press conference Friday.
The warning about the new strain comes after experts have maintained that there was no evidence that it could be more deadly.
Johnson added that “all current evidence” shows that both vaccines the U.K. has approved — one from Pfizer-BioNTech and the other from AstraZeneca — “remain effective” against both strains of the virus.
Patrick Vallance, the British government’s chief scientific adviser, said there’s no evidence of an increase in mortality from the new variant among those who are hospitalized.
“However, when data is looked at for those who’ve tested positive — so anyone that has tested positive — there is evidence that there’s an increased risk for those who have the new variant compared to the old virus.”
To illustrate his point, Wallace said that of 1,000 60-year-old men who test positive, 13 or 14 would be expected to die with the new variant. With the original variant, 10 people would be expected to die.
……..
- Discussion
-
Boris Johnson: "Some evidence" new Covid-19 variant could be more deadly https://t.co/CaLxoPLxTa pic.twitter.com/Dpd2If5fMm
— The Hill (@thehill) January 22, 2021
You must be logged in to reply to this topic.