Massachusetts now has its first confirmed case of the COVID-19 variant, according to state health officials.The state’s Department of Public Health announced Sunday that the first case of the COVID-19 variant B.1.1.7 has been detected in the Bay State.This case involves the same variant that was initially discovered in the United Kingdom, state health officials say.”Given the increased transmissibility of this variant and the number of states and other countries that have found infected cases, the department expected the variant to arrive in Massachusetts eventually,” reads a statement from the Massachusetts DPH. “The public health risk reduction measures remain the same. Individuals must continue to wear masks or face coverings while out in public, maintain 6-foot social distancing, stay home when you are sick and get tested if you have symptoms or are identified as a close contact.”The person who tested positive is a Boston woman in her 20s, according to the DPH. She recently traveled to the U.K. and developed symptoms the day after she returned to Massachusetts in early January. She had tested negative for COVID-19 prior to leaving the United Kingdom, but tested positive for COVID-19 after her return.The DPH says a genetic sample was sent to an out-of-state laboratory as part of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s established surveillance process to identify COVID-19 variants. The State Public Health Laboratory was notified last evening of the positive variant results.The woman was interviewed by contact tracers at the time the initial positive result was received, and close contacts were identified. She is being re-interviewed by public health officials now that the variant has been identified as the cause of illness. Surveillance testing for the B.1.1.7 variant has been ongoing at the Massachusetts State Public Health Laboratory in collaboration with clinical diagnostic laboratories and academic partners, according to the DPH. Surveillance consists of genomic sequencing on portions of COVID-19 positive specimens.To date, the CDC has reported 88 cases from 14 states in the U.S.PHNjcmlwdCBpZD0iaW5mb2dyYW1fMF85MTUyMTg3My03NmRhLTQ0ZmUtOTA0Ny1mMTllZWFlZGFjNmQiIHRpdGxlPSJDb3JvbmF2aXJ1cyBpbiBNYXNzYWNodXNldHRzIiBzcmM9Imh0dHBzOi8vZS5pbmZvZ3JhbS5jb20vanMvZGlzdC9lbWJlZC5qcz9yeXoiIHR5cGU9InRleHQvamF2YXNjcmlwdCI+PC9zY3JpcHQ+
BOSTON —
Massachusetts now has its first confirmed case of the COVID-19 variant, according to state health officials.
The state’s Department of Public Health announced Sunday that the first case of the COVID-19 variant B.1.1.7 has been detected in the Bay State.
This case involves the same variant that was initially discovered in the United Kingdom, state health officials say.
“Given the increased transmissibility of this variant and the number of states and other countries that have found infected cases, the department expected the variant to arrive in Massachusetts eventually,” reads a statement from the Massachusetts DPH. “The public health risk reduction measures remain the same. Individuals must continue to wear masks or face coverings while out in public, maintain 6-foot social distancing, stay home when you are sick and get tested if you have symptoms or are identified as a close contact.”
The person who tested positive is a Boston woman in her 20s, according to the DPH. She recently traveled to the U.K. and developed symptoms the day after she returned to Massachusetts in early January. She had tested negative for COVID-19 prior to leaving the United Kingdom, but tested positive for COVID-19 after her return.
The DPH says a genetic sample was sent to an out-of-state laboratory as part of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s established surveillance process to identify COVID-19 variants. The State Public Health Laboratory was notified last evening of the positive variant results.
The woman was interviewed by contact tracers at the time the initial positive result was received, and close contacts were identified. She is being re-interviewed by public health officials now that the variant has been identified as the cause of illness.
Surveillance testing for the B.1.1.7 variant has been ongoing at the Massachusetts State Public Health Laboratory in collaboration with clinical diagnostic laboratories and academic partners, according to the DPH. Surveillance consists of genomic sequencing on portions of COVID-19 positive specimens.
To date, the CDC has reported 88 cases from 14 states in the U.S.