TAMPA (WFLA) – The Centers for Disease Control says Florida has become the first state to reach 500 cases of the B.1.1.7 coronavirus variant first discovered in England.
The variant that emerged in Britain was detected in a Martin County man in his 20s on New Year’s Eve with no history of travel.
Florida surpassed California with the most cases of the mutated virus on Jan. 19. Across the nation, there are 2,102 reported cases.
Back in January, Dr. Kami Kim, the director of the Infectious Diseases Division of USF Health told 8 On Your Side some of Florida’s then 50 cases of COVID-19 confirmed by the CDC to be caused by variant strains of the virus have been detected in Hillsborough County.
Neither the CDC nor the Florida Department of Health has said in which Florida counties these cases have been identified.
