There's new concern today that the UK variant of COVID-19 not only spreads faster, but is more deadly.

A UK report released Friday states there is "a realistic possibility" that variant is deadlier but states the data is not conclusive.

A recent CDC model shows the new variant could become the predominant form of coronavirus by March.

Experts say the current vaccines should be effective against it.

The variant has been found in 22 states and there have been 195 cases reported, but health officials believe many more cases are going undetected.

Moderna says its vaccine protects against the British and South African variants. They say they are now launching new studies to look at adding a third shot of its current vaccine to boost its two-dose regimen. Last week, Rockland-based Pfizer released data that shows its vaccine was also effective at blocking the UK variant.