A new Covid strain has been discovered in the UK, but experts warn it’s too early to tell how contagious it is.
The UK Health Security Agency’s top experts have warned that they are investigating the new XE version.
They claim it is a mutation of the BA.1 and BA.2 Omicron strains, indicating that it is a “recombinant” virus derived from two additional viral origins.
However, specialists are unsure whether it is more transmissible than earlier viruses that have wrecked havoc across the UK.
According to the health authorities, there were 637 instances of the XE strain in England as of March 22.
“The numbers were too tiny to analyse the XE recombinant by area.”
A top government thinker Sir Patrick Vallance acknowledged that the next Covid type might be worse than Omicron.
He called it a “mistake” to believe that as the virus changes, it would become less lethal.
Although Covid instances may have peaked, there will be additional hospitalizations and deaths from this current wave, according to Sir Patrick.
He told MPs that, despite the immunisation programmes’ effectiveness in avoiding mortality, giving people booster shots every four months was not a “credible” policy.
However, it is not all doom and gloom for Brits, since a successful vaccination roll out and more advanced medical technology mean that dealing with new strains is now simpler.
