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Delta variant brings new Covid-19 fears

The Centers for Disease Control said this week that the Delta strain of coronavirus, first identified in India, is a “variant of concern” in the U.S., sparking fears of an outbreak similar to the Delta-driven case surge in the U.K. The strain, which now accounts for more than 10 percent of U.S. Covid cases, is thought to be 40 percent more transmissible than Britain’s Alpha variant. The Delta strain is also believed to cause more hospitalizations, although the CDC says the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines are effective against it. Experts believe the Johnson & Johnson vaccine also offers good protection against the variant. The U.S. passed 600,000 Covid deaths this week, with cases still falling in most states but spiking in some red states with relatively low vaccination rates.