ATLANTA — There are concerns about the coronavirus variants. The director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention expects the U.K. variant to become the dominant coronavirus in this country by next month.
Channel 2′s Carol Sbarge spoke to the head of the CDC department that studies and monitors the variants.
Dr. Gregory Armstrong, head of the CDC’s Advanced Molecular Detection Program, says all viruses mutate over time. He says they develop changes in their DNA.
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Armstrong said they test and track variants and are helping public health departments around the country be able to do that too.
Armstrong said it’s important that the CDC monitors the virus to track changes over time. He said it also allows them to be able to pick up important changes as they occur so they can respond to them.
The CDC is closely monitoring and studying the variants now in the U.S. That includes the U.K. one, which is more transmissible.
Armstrong said that’s why it’s critical even as coronavirus cases are coming down to keep following safety guidelines or we could face another surge.
He said the way to prevent transmission is to wear masks, social distance and get vaccinated. He says with mutations, vaccines over time can become more or less severe.
This is still a fairly new virus. Armstrong said the good thing is that at this point it still looks like the vaccines work.
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