The British coronavirus strain is doubling in the U.S. every 10 days, according to a study released Sunday on the medRxiv server. Researchers estimated that the British variant is expected to become the predominant strain in the U.S. by March, posing a potential risk of increased cases and deaths, although the study has not yet been peer-reviewed or published in a medical journal.
“Our study shows that the U.S. is on a similar trajectory as other countries where B.1.1.7 rapidly became the dominant SARS-CoV-2 variant, requiring immediate and decisive action to minimize COVID-19 morbidity and mortality,” according to the study.
“Nothing in this paper is surprising, but people need to see it,” said Kristian Andersen, who is the study’s co-author and a virologist at the Scripps Research Institute in La Jolla, Calif., The New York Times reported.