Delta Variant is More Transmissible Than Other Variants, Could Account For 90% New COVID-19 Infections in EU by August-End, Says ECDC Director Andrea Ammon
The Delta Variant of COVID-19 could account for 90 percent of coronavirus infections in the European Union by August-end, European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control said on Wednesday. The ECDC director stated, "It is very likely that it will circulate extensively during the summer, particularly among unvaccinated youth."
Brussels, June 23: The Delta Variant of COVID-19 could account for 90 percent of coronavirus infections in the European Union by August-end, European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control said on Wednesday. The agency also stressed the need for boosting COVID-19 vaccination programme to counter the Delta variant of coronavirus.
ECDC Director Andrea Ammon said, "Based on the scientific data available, the Delta variant is more transmissible than other circulating variants and we estimate that by the end of August, it will represent 90 percent of all Sars-Cov-2 virus circulating in the European Union." Ammon further added that the data showed that the Delta variant would also infect people who had received only a single dose of the COVID-19 vaccine currently available. 'COVID-19 Delta Variant Greatest Threat to US, Accounts for 20% of Coronavirus Cases’, Says Anthony Fauci.
The ECDC director stated, "It is very likely that it will circulate extensively during the summer, particularly among unvaccinated youth." According to Ammon, the Delta variant could cause a risk for the more vulnerable individuals to be infected and experience severe illness and death if they are not fully vaccinated.
Statement by ECDC Director:
The official statement of the EU's health agency said, "Based on the current evidence, the SARS-CoV-2 Delta (B.1.617.2) variant of concern (VOC) is 40-60% more transmissible than the Alpha (Β.1.1.7) VOC and may be associated with higher risk of hospitalisation. Furthermore, there is evidence that those who have only received the first dose of a two-dose vaccination course are less well protected against infection with the Delta variant than against other variants." Delta Plus Variant: Centre Writes to Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Kerala to Take Up Immediate Containment Measures.
The agency also warned EU nations to be careful while lifting the COVID-19 restrictions. "Modelling scenarios indicate that any relaxation over the summer months of the stringency of nonpharmaceutical measures that were in place in the EU/EEA in early June could lead to a fast and significant increase in daily cases in all age groups," the official statement read.
Full Statement by ECDC:
Notably, Delta Variant was first detected in India. Earlier this week, scientists in New Delhi said the highly transmissible Delta variant of SARS-CoV-2 had mutated further to form the 'Delta plus' or 'AY.1. Around 40 cases of this variant have been detected in India till now. According to reports, the Delta Plus variant is found in 10 countries across the world, including India.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jun 23, 2021 09:51 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).