1/ On @CBSNews this evening with 3 of my favorite epidemiologists: @ashishkjha @mtosterholm @DrTomFrieden. The editing of my interview is a bit misleading. For clarification:
2/ The UK B.1.1.7 variant is more contagious and *may* be more virulent. If someone is infected with a more virulent strain, that means their risk of more severe disease and death is higher.
3/ The UK B.1.1.7 variant is definitely more contagious / transmissible / infections, which means that if you're exposed, you're more likely to get infected. That means more cases, which equals more disease, hospitalizations, and death.
4/ To be clear, the COVID vaccines remain effective against the variant strains, BUT we have seen a reduction in their effectiveness. This reduction is A RED FLAG. We cannot let these variants spread. We cannot allow the virus to spread.
5/ The more a virus spreads, the more it will mutate. Mutations are how viruses evolve to escape our defenses. We don't want to let the virus mutate to the point that our vaccines no longer protect us.
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