Health & Fitness
COVID-19 Variant Confirmed In Pierce County
The variant was first reported in Snohomish County Saturday. Experts say this new strain spreads faster and more easily than the original.
PIERCE COUNTY, WA — A rapidly-spreading variant of COVID-19 has been found in Pierce County.
The Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department confirmed the news Sunday, saying they had discovered a former patient carrying the B.1.1.7 variant. The B.1.1.7 variant, also known as SARS-CoV-2 VOC 202012/01, is often called the U.K. variant. It was discovered in the United Kingdom in September. Compared to the predominant COVID-19 strain, it is transmitted more easily and quickly, though it does not cause more severe symptoms or increase the risk of death.
The news comes just one day after Washington reported its very first confirmed cases of the U.K. variant. Both those cases were in Snohomish County, but Pierce County's case could actually predate them: the health department says the variant was found in a patient who had already overcome the virus and had finished their isolation and quarantine.
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Though it is the first case in the county, it's unlikely to be the last. The Washington State Department of Health says there are very likely other carriers of the variant across the state, and the Centers For Disease Control have predicted that the U.K. variant will become the dominant strain of COVID-19 in America as early as March.
"While finding the B.1.1.7 variant is concerning, we knew it was only a matter of time before we found evidence of it here in Washington." said Dr. Umair Shah, Washington's Secretary of Health on Saturday.
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Fortunately, the two existing COVID-19 vaccines appear to work on the variant, as to other coronavirus safety protections like wearing a mask, frequently washing hands, and limiting gatherings with others.
“This new information does not change how we fight COVID-19,” said Dr. Anthony L-T Chen, director of the Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department. “Everyone needs to continue to do their part to minimize the spread—and get vaccinated when it is your turn—so we can put this pandemic behind us.”
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