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Coronavirus Variant Identified In Boone County

Columbia/Boone County health officials announced Thursday that a Boone County resident tested positive for the B.1.1.7 variant of the coronavirus. 

The Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services informed the county Wednesday it had found a case of the variant, first identified in the U.K., in a test from a Boone County resident. The state screens a sample of tests from around the state for variants on a regular basis.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced earlier in the week that the B.1.1.7 variant, which is more transmissible than the original coronavirus, has become the dominant strain in the U.S.

Nevertheless, Boone County Health spokesperson Sara Humm said the same precautions still apply. “The variants have shown to be more contagious and because of that it’s even more important that we continue wearing masks, social distancing and washing hands," Humm said.

Humm declined to say whether the case was travel-related, citing privacy concerns.

State health officials confirmed a case of the B.1.351 variant, first identified in South Africa on Tuesday. In a press release, DHSS wrote the variant was identified in a sample from an adult living in Jackson County

Sebastián Martínez Valdivia was a health reporter at KBIA and is documentary filmmaker who focuses on access to care in rural and immigrant communities. A native Spanish speaker and lifelong Missouri resident, Sebastián is interested in the often overlooked and under-covered world of immigrant life in the rural midwest. He has a bachelor's degree in broadcast journalism from the University of Missouri and a master's degree in documentary journalism at the same institution. Aside from public health, his other interests include conservation, climate change and ecology.