Over 50% Covid cases in US Delta variant

Houston, July 7

The highly contagious Delta variant has become the dominant Covid strain in the US, accounting for more than 51% of Covid infections in the country, according to new data released by the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

The variant, also known as B.1.617.2, was first detected in India in December and is spreading quickly across the globe. In some parts of America, the delta strain accounts for more than 80 per cent of new infections, including some Midwestern states like Missouri, Kansas and Iowa.

It is already causing 74.3% of infections in Western states, including Utah and Colorado, and 58.8% of infections in Southern states like Texas, Louisiana, Arkansas and Oklahoma.

New Covid infections with the Delta variant now account for 51.7% of the infections.

Meanwhile, President Joe Biden has said the US is likely to reach the mark of 160 million fully vaccinated Americans by the end of this week — PTI