by: Brian Entin, NewsNation Now
Posted: Jan 1, 2021 / 10:09 PM EST/ Updated: Jan 1, 2021 / 10:09 PM EST
(NewsNation Now) — First it was Colorado. Then California. And now Florida.
A new variant of COVID-19, named B117, was found in the United Kingdom last month and has made its way to the United States.
The latest case was discovered in Martin County, Florida. Health officials say a man in his 20s with no history of travel was infected.
Researchers believe it is more contagious and spreading faster than what has been discovered in the U.S.
“It is hard to put an exact number on it, but when you look at modeling studies people say it may be between twenty to fifty percent more contagious. But you have to take all of those numbers with a grain of salt because they are based on modeling,” said Dr. Amesh Adalja, John Hopkins University.
Dr. Adalja says regular COVID-19 tests will not detect if a positive case is from the new variant of the virus; that takes additional testing.
New COVID-19 virus strain in Florida: What you need to know
He says scientists are sampling 3,500 of