A faster-spreading variant of the novel coronavirus has been detected in Louisville just weeks after the first case of the mutation was recorded in the state.
News of the COVID-19 variant reaching Jefferson County came just as the Louisville area reported its lowest weekly case numbers since November. But with the arrival of the more contagious strain first identified in the United Kingdom, the city's top health strategist Dr. Sarah Moyer cautioned against complacency.
"These numbers can change direction at any minute, so we can't let our guard down," she said. "The mask wearing, the social distancing, hand washing is working, and it's even more important that we keep those things up now that we know the variant is in Jefferson County."
Thought to be highly transmissible but not more severe in its presentation, the variant was first documented in Kentucky in late January.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warn the new strain will likely be the dominant strain in the United States by March.
