COVID-19 variants are more transmissble than earlier strains

Question

New variants are an expected part of the evolution of viruses, and that includes SARS CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. Yale Medicine provides some background on key variants that have surfaced during the course of the pandemic.

Answer 1

I believe that your claim is true that Covid variants can be more transmissible than Covid-19 through more research on the topic. While looking into WebMD's information on COVID-19 I found that variants tend to spread faster, cause more serious symptoms that end up sending more people to the hospital, and vaccines, tests, and treatments are not made to combat them as well. This aligns with your claim that variants are more transmissible. I believe WebMD is a trustworthy place to find information as the URAC, Utilization Review Accreditation Commission, has accredited their operations. I also looked into other places such as the CDC's ISDA to ensure this information was correct.

https://www.webmd.com/covid/coronavirus-strains

https://www.idsociety.org/covid-19-real-time-learning-network/diagnostics/covid-19-variant-update/#/+/0/publishedDate_na_dt/desc/

Answer 2

This claim is true. The source that you provided, Yale Medicine, is a respectable one as well as the fact you talked about the virus that causes COVID-19, showing that it is normal for there to be variants. According to the Mayo Clinic, a respected health care system, "The main variant in the United States is omicron. This variant spreads more easily than the original virus that causes COVID-19and the delta variant." This means that while the variants might not be as dangerous it is more transmissible. Just like Omicron, "JN. 1 does appear to be more transmissible, it does not appear to cause more severe disease than other SARS-CoV-2 variants," according to IDSA. The IDSA is the Infectious Disease Society of America so they are reliable when it comes to COVID-19 information.