South Africa Coronavirus Variant Detected In NYC

NEW YORK CITY — A concerning coronavirus variant from South Africa was detected for the first time in New York City, officials said.

Two cases of B.1.351 — the South Africa variant — were identified in city dwellers, health Commissioner Dave Chokshi said Tuesday.

Chokshi also said so-called “UK variant” cases had ballooned to 166 cases from 59 last week. He said the variants accounted for about 8 percent of cases in a recent sample.

“We are still learning about the effectiveness of vaccines on these new variants, but the research so far is consistent that the COVID vaccines authorized by the FDA will help lower the risk of severe infections and death,” he said.

The emergence of the South Africa variant and further spread of B.1.1.7 — the UK variant — in the city comes amid news of a potentially homegrown, New York City-borne batch of coronavirus.

Anthony Fauci, the famed infectious disease expert, recently said the White House is taking the New York City variant “very, very seriously.” Early studies showed it accounted for as many as 25 percent of cases in one sample and could have mutations reduce the effectiveness of COVID-19 treatments and vaccines.

But Choskhi and Jay Varma, the city’s senior health adviser, cautioned that the science is still out on that variant.

Three other strains — the UK and South African variants, and another from Brazil — are classified as “variants of concern” because of their increased risks, Varma said.

Varma said the New York City variant is now categorized as a “variant of interest” — meaning more research needs to be done.

“It means we’re watching it, we're worried about what might happen but we need to get more data to see if similarly to the UK and South African and Brazilian strains that it has some real-world effects that we're concerned about such as dodging our immune system or being more transmissible,” he said.

Chokshi said scientists don’t yet know if the New York City variant spreads more easily, causes more severe illness, reduces vaccine effectiveness or causes reinfection. He urged New Yorkers to avoid infection in the first place by continuing to wear masks and other precautions.

Chokshi also pushed back on Fauci’s apparent claim that the variant likely started in Washington Heights. Yet again, scientists don’t have have enough data to tell for sure where the variant emerged, he said.

Click here for the latest city report on coronavirus variants.