Canada’s first case of the Brazilian COVID-19 variant was detected in Toronto over the weekend, marking it the third variant the country has discovered within its borders, following cases of the UK and South Africa strains identified in the last few months.
TPH also reported the first case of the South Africa variant—B.1.351—in the city on Sunday. However, the patient had no recent travel history and no known contact with anyone who is a returned traveler, according to the agency.
“Scientists and medical professionals are concerned that these variants are more transmissible than the original coronavirus,” TPH said.
“The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevent (CDC) has indicated that research is ongoing to determine more about these variants to better understand how easily they might be transmitted and the effectiveness of currently authorized vaccines against them.”
“There is evidence to suggest that some of the mutations in the P.1 variant may affect the ability of antibodies (from natural infection or vaccination) to recognize and neutralize the virus,” the CDC states, “but additional studies are needed.”
“Preliminary evidence from non-peer-reviewed publications suggests that the Moderna mRNA-1273 vaccine currently used in the U.S. may be less effective against this variant,” said the CDC. The agency suggested additional studies are needed to verify that.
The measure authorizes the provincial government to switch any region back to lockdown if there are surges of COVID-19 infections or its health care system risks becoming overwhelmed.
He said the federal government cannot prevent Canadians from returning to the country at a land border, even without a test, but if they don’t have the required test they can be fined up to $3,000.
The government began requiring all people arriving in Canada by air to show a negative PCR-based COVID-19 test in early January.
