As fresh hope is injected into the fight against COVID-19
with the arrival of a new vaccine, there are concerning reports of a new strain
causing cases to skyrocket in London.
First shipments of Moderna's coronavirus vaccine are
driving optimism in the United States. However, British officials are sounding
the alarm about a new strain of the virus which could be up to 70% more
contagious than the original.
U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson is sending parts of the
country, including London, back into full lockdown because of the new strain.
Several mainland European countries are suspending flights
from Great Britain to keep the mutation away from their borders.
On a conference call with members of the media on Sunday,
Gov. Andrew Cuomo urged the U.S. federal government to do the same. He says six
flights a day come from the U.K. to New York.
"To me, this is reprehensible, because this is what
happened in the spring," Cuomo said. "Other European countries have
done a ban, we haven't. And today that variant is getting on a plane and
landing at JFK."
Cuomo also issued a letter to President Donald
Trump this weekend
urging him to "use his influence and force
Congress to ensure the next COVID-19 stimulus package includes real financial
relief for American families, states and localities." Read Cuomo's letter to the president
here.Some U.S. doctors say they are not overly concerned about
the new strain at this point. Dr. Bettie Steinberg with Northwell Health says
viral mutations are common.
Experts also say it's likely that the new strain is not any
more deadly than the original, even if it appears to be more contagious. It's
believed that the vaccine, which is currently being distributed in Great
Britain and in the United States, will be effective against this mutation.
Still, Dr. Steinberg says it's possible that the new strain
could make it to the U.S. even with lockdown in place.
"If that strain has a slightly better advantage at
replicating or infecting or whatever it is, it will spread," he says.
"The original virus has changed many times."