The New COVID-19 Strains and What it Means for Kansas City

2/24/2021

Quinn Luce

Two new COVID-19 Strains from the U.K and South Africa have sparked worries of vaccine effectiveness and increased contamination.

The United Kingdom discovered a new variant of the novel coronavirus in September, and by December, two-thirds of all cases were of the new variant. The new strain that stemmed from virus mutation has raised some concern because it is proven to be more contagious and may be more resistant to vaccination.

One person in Ellis County Kansas and two people in Johnson County Missouri tested positive for the new COVID-19 variant from the U.K., but it has not spread to the point of mass concern. Dr. Roshelle Wilensky from the CDC stated on KMBC that, “Now is not the time to let our guard down,” and that the spread of the new variant comes from not wearing masks during in-person social gatherings.

The U.K variant is 70% more contagious than previous versions of the coronavirus, and phase 3 Novavax vaccine trials found that it was 89% effective against the strain.

Another strain from South Africa has also entered the country’s attention recently. This strain was first detected in October and since then scientists found that 90% of all COVID cases in South Africa contained the variant. This strain is 50% more contagious than the previous version of the virus.

As for the South African variant in the US, LiveScience tells us that, “The first two cases of B.1.351 were reported in the U.S. on Thursday (Jan. 28) in South Carolina, according to a statement from the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control. The two cases do not appear to be connected, and neither case had a history of recent travel, which suggests the variant is spreading in the community.”

It was also found that vaccines in the U.S are only 72% effective against the South African variant as opposed to the 90-99% effectiveness against normal strains of the virus.

While the situation hasn’t developed into a mass health concern, the U.S is not as effective at detecting different strains of the virus because we don’t have a genetic surveillance system, unlike the U.K.

With both strains having increased contamination rates and decreased vaccination effectiveness, the biggest thing to take away from this situation is to be extremely cautious. Always wear a mask when you are in public, and avoid indoor gatherings.

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Ms. Scott is an expert in communications, both spoken and written. Besides leading the staff of student journalists at B-Line, she teaches Advanced Debate and middle school Introduction to Debate, International Studies and Current Events.

She attended high school in the Wichita area where she occupied herself with debate and writing. Ms. Scott obtained her degree in secondary education (speech/ theatre) with a minor in communication studies from Kansas State University. She received her master’s degree in communication from Baylor University in 2018.

She believes every student should be a capable communicator and self-advocate shaping their own future. She finds that both mass communication settings like B-Line and rhetorical settings like debate prepare students for their future.