VIDEO: The new strain of COVID first seen in the UK has now been reported in California and Colorado, and doctors in Arizona believe it's been in the state for over a month.
"I would say, 80-90% of the people we're testing are positive. We're seeing so many more COVID cases, and I would be very surprised if we don't already have this new strain well within Arizona at this time," said Dr. Andrew Carroll. The new strain of the virus is more contagious; however, there is no evidence that the symptoms are more severe. Dr. Carroll worries that that higher rate of transmission will lead to a higher mortality rate.
"If you get 10,000 people sick and with a 1% mortality, that's 100 people that are going to die. But if you get 100,000 people sick, that's going to be 1,000 people that die, and that's a pretty significant change," explained Dr. Carroll.