UK Covid variant being spread by children, US disease expert says

Michael Osterholm also said that the US is at the beginning of a “new surge” of infections

Mr Osterholm said that in the last two weeks more than 750 schools in Minnesota had reported cases of the UK variant (pictured: Cars line up to get the vaccine in Miami, Florida) (AFP via Getty Images)

A top US infectious disease expert has warned that a fourth wave of Covid-19 is sweeping the country and that the UK coronavirus variant could infect children more easily than previous strains.

Michael Osterholm, director of the Centre for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota, said that the US is at the beginning of a “new surge” of infections and the B.1.1.7 variant is a “brand new ball game.”

He told NBC’s Meet the Press: “Unlike the previous strains of the virus, we didn’t see children under eighth grade get infected often, or they were not frequently very ill.

“They didn’t transmit to the rest of the community. That’s why I was one of those people very strongly supporting reopening in-class learning. B.1.1.7 turns that on its head.” 

Mr Osterholm said that in the last two weeks more than 750 schools in Minnesota had reported cases of the UK variant, which experts believe is up to 70 per cent more transmissible than the original strain.

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A study published in the British Medical Journal last month also showed that the UK variant - that was first detected in September 2020 - is between 30% and 100% more deadly than previous variants.

In a separate interview with Fox News Sunday’s Chris Wallace, Mr Osterholm said in relation to the UK variant that “we’re almost in a new pandemic.” He added that the approved vaccines are “effective against this particular variant.”

Mr Osterholm also suggested that the US should look at other countries, such as the UK, who have locked down parts of their countries in order to control the new variant.

Former Food and Drug Administration head Dr Scott Gottlieb has also said that fresh outbreaks of the disease could be down to children, after a spike in cases in Michigan, Minnesota and Massachusetts. 

He told CBS News ‘Face the Nation’: “What we’re seeing is pockets of infection around the country, particularly in younger people who haven’t been vaccinated and also in school-aged children.”

Dr Gottlieb added there should be enough immunity in the general population to prevent a fourth wave of the virus.