Dr. Anthony Fauci, a top infectious disease expert in the United States, recently explained why the delta variant is truly dangerous.
Dr. Fauci talks about the delta variant
Fauci told CNBC that the COVID-19 vaccines are working against the new transmissible variants. However, he said the variants are showing they can evade vaccines. So, he said, more people need to get vaccinated to stop more dangerous variants from popping up.
- “Viruses don’t mutate unless you allow them to replicate and spread in the community, you give them ample time and ample opportunity to mutate and you got a new variant,” Fauci told CNBC. “The easiest and best and most effective way that we can prevent the emergence of a new variant and crush the already existing delta variant is to get everyone vaccinated.”
Fauci told CNBC that U.S. officials are concerned about the COVID-19 breakthrough cases — where fully-vaccinated Americans get infected with the coronavirus. The cases may be mild, but they are worrying.
- “That’s something we obviously don’t want to see,” he told CNBC. “This virus is clearly different than the viruses and the variants that we’ve had experience with before. It has an extraordinary capability of transmitting from person to person.”
The danger of COVID-19 variants
Dr. Ashish Jha, dean of the Brown University School of Public Health, told CNN back in June that areas of low vaccination rates could increase the spread of variants. And the spread of COVID-19 variants means even more variants could arise.
- “We’re already starting to see places with low vaccination rates starting to have relatively big spikes from the delta variant,” he said.
- “And any time you have large outbreaks, it does become a breeding ground for potentially more variants.”
That’s why the delta variant isn’t the only COVID-19 variant out there. For example, the lambda variant of the coronavirus was recently found in Houston, as I wrote for the Deseret News.
Per USA Today, experts are unsure if the single case can create a widespread outbreak. So far, there have been less than 700 cases of the lambda variant in the U.S.