The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has confirmed that a new strand of COVID-19 with a high rate of infection, which has caused a significant increase in hospitalizations in China, has spread to multiple locations in the United States.
CBS News reported that the CDC confirmed that the new NB.1.8.1 COVID-19 variant connected to significant spike in COVID-19 cases in China has been detected in different locations throughout the United States. The outlet noted that the earliest U.S. cases of the new COVID-19 strain were detected as part of an international traveler airport screening program in March and April.
In a statement obtained by CBS News, a CDC spokesperson said, “CDC is aware of reported cases of COVID-19 NB.1.8.1 in China and is in regular contact with international partners.”
In an executive summary shared by The World Health Organization, officials said, “NB.1.8.1 has been designated a SARS-CoV-2 variant under monitoring (VUM) with increasing proportions globally, while LP.8.1 is starting to decline. Considering the available evidence, the additional public health risk posed by NB.1.8.1 is evaluated as low at the global level.”
The World Health Organization added, “Despite a concurrent increase in cases and hospitalizations in some countries where NB.1.8.1 is widespread, current data do not indicate that this variant leads to more severe illness than other variants in circulation.”
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According to The New York Post, the CDC has indicated that there are currently not enough cases of the new COVID-19 variant in the United States for the agency’s variant estimates to properly track the cases; however, the outlet noted that medical experts have warned that the cases in China point to the virus spreading faster than other strains of the virus.
Earlier this month, Hong Kong’s government warned that COVID-19 cases had reached a “one-year high” and that the country was experiencing a “significant increase” in hospitalizations due to the new strain of COVID-19. Additionally, The New York Post noted that Chinese state media reported that the number of patients in China with COVID-19 infections visiting emergency rooms more than doubled in just one month.
Dr. Amy Edwards, a professor of pediatrics, told CBS News, “What they’re seeing in China, Hong Kong and some other areas where this variant has really surged, is an increase in hospitalization.”
Dr. Edwin Tsui, the head of Hong Kong’s Centre for Health Protection (CHP), warned that the new COVID-19 variant “should not be taken lightly” and added that the CHP was “cautious of the possible emergence of more virulent or vaccine-mismatched strains of the virus in the future.”
