Variant strain of virus that causes COVID-19 confirmed in Alaska

State officials say the more contagious strain of the virus that causes COVID-19 originally spotted in the United Kingdom has been detected in Alaska.

On Tuesday, the Alaska Department of Health and Social Services announced that the new strain, which had already shown up in 24 states, has now made it to the Last Frontier.

While the new strain was confirmed Tuesday, the sample it was sequenced from was taken in late December.  It’s not known how many possible cases of the variant strain are in the state, since state officials say only about five-percent of samples have been sequenced to a degree that would differentiate them from the original strain of the virus.

Dr. Anne Zink, Alaska’s Chief Medical Officer, says it is not surprising that the variant strain arrived, here, and that the Department of Health and Social Services has been steadily working to identify variants of the virus.

State Epidemiologist Dr. Joe McLaughlin says virus mutation is common, so new strains are to be expected over time.

The UK variant, technically known as B-1-1-7 strain, is believed to be more contagious than the original strain of the virus that was circulating in the United States.  The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warn that it could become the dominant strain of the virus that causes COVID-19 by this spring.

State officials continue to urge Alaskans to prevent the spread of COVID-19 by social distancing, avoiding gatherings, wearing masks, washing hands thoroughly, and monitoring themselves for symptoms.