RICHMOND, Va. (ABC7) — The Virginia Department of Health announced Wednesday that a case of the British variant of COVID-19 has been reported in an adult resident of Northwest Virginia who recently returned to Virginia after travel.
In the latest case in northwest Virginia, health officials have learned of 3 cases of the B. 1. 1. 7 variant in Northern Virginia, bringing the total to 4 cases in the state. Health officials say that without surveillance efforts, more cases will most likely continue to be reported in the Commonwealth.
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Health officials say the B. 1. 1. 7 variant, which first emerged in the United Kingdom in late 2020, is linked to increased person-to-person transmission of COVID. An initial report indicates that this variant may cause more severe illness than other variants. , more studies are still needed to verify this information, according to a report from the Virginia Department of Health.
The Department of General Services’ Division of Consolidated Laboratory Services notified the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) of the variant case.
For more facts on COVID-19 variants, visit the VDH COVID-19 Testing online page and the CDC’s New COVID-19 Variants online page. For more data on DCLS and its use of next-generation sequencing, dgs. virginia. gov/dcls.