Delta variant: 'We have two key weapons in fighting this virus,' doctor explains - Yahoo Finance

The Delta variant, which was first identified in India, has now spread to more than 132 countries and is as contagious as chickenpox, according to an internal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) document.

Fully vaccinated COVID-19 patients infected with the Delta variant experienced "significantly lower odds" of moderate or severe outcomes, according to a local study.

Israel warned on Tuesday against travel to the United States and other countries and said it would tighten quarantine measures for inbound travelers as part of efforts to slow the spread of the coronavirus Delta variant.

New COVID-19 cases have surged in highly-vaccinated Israel since the emergence of the highly contagious Delta variant, prompting health officials this week to begin administering vaccine booster shots to people over 60.

COVID-19 cases rise as the delta variant spreads. .

Among people infected by the Delta variant of the coronavirus, fully vaccinated people with "breakthrough" infections may be just as likely as unvaccinated people to spread the virus to others, new research suggests.

Photograph: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images A surge in Covid-19 infections, driven by the highly contagious Delta variant, has prompted San Francisco and six other counties in California’s Bay Area to reimpos.

South Korea has detected its first two cases of the new Delta Plus COVID-19 variant, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said on Tuesday, as the country battles with its fourth wave of infections.

The Delta Plus variant is a sub-lineage of the Delta variant first identified in India, and has acquired the spike protein mutation called K417N, which is also found in the Beta variant first identified in South Africa.

With a new wave of COVID-19 infections fueled by the Delta variant striking countries worldwide, disease experts are scrambling to learn whether the latest version of coronavirus is making people - mainly the unvaccinated - sicker than before.

The agency cited research in Canada, Singapore and Scotland showing that people infected with the Delta variant were more likely to be hospitalized than patients earlier in the pandemic.

officials said on Monday, even as vaccination rates grow amid concern over the highly contagious Delta variant.

"We remain concerned about the continued rise in cases, driven by the Delta variant," said White House COVID-19 response coordinator Jeff Zients, noting the cases were concentrated in communities with low vaccination rates against the coronavirus.

As the Delta variant sweeps the globe, scientists are learning more about why new versions of the coronavirus spread faster, and what this could mean for vaccine efforts.

Among people infected by the Delta variant of the coronavirus, fully vaccinated people with "breakthrough" infections may be just as likely as unvaccinated people to spread the virus to others, new research suggests

China suspended flights and trains, canceled professional basketball league games and announced mass coronavirus testing in Wuhan on Tuesday as widening outbreaks of the delta variant reached the city where the disease was first detected in late 2019

China has not eliminated but largely curbed COVID-19 at home with quick lockdowns and mass testing to isolate infected people whenever new cases pop up