Story at a glance
- The delta variant composes 51.7 percent of all U.S. COVID-19 cases as of July 3.
- The strain is more transmissible and has appeared in every state.
- Prior to hitting the U.S., it was surging in the U.K. and France.
The contagious delta COVID-19 strain has officially become the most common variant in the U.S., representing about 51.7 percent of all cases in the country as of July 3, per fresh data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Deemed a variant of concern, the delta variant, referred to as B.1.617.2, has concerned public health officials as they fight to continue widespread vaccinations.
COVID-19 variants are mutations from the original strain. The delta variant has appeared in all 50 U.S. states, with some states seeing higher proportions of the delta variant than others. But given the fast spread, this figure is difficult to accurately estimate.
“Variant proportions are dynamic and difficult to predict due to reporting delays, the presence of multiple variants, and changing incidence,” CDC officials told ABC News in a statement on Tuesday.
The CDC earlier noted that the delta variant spreads more easily between people and classified it as a variant of concern on June 15, as it became more prominent among U.S. COVID-19 infection samples.
“The spread of the more transmissible B.1.617.2 variant combined with the U.S. population that remains unvaccinated leaves many people at risk of infection,” officials note.
On a global scale, the delta variant has appeared in 90 distinct countries or jurisdictions and is especially prominent among Western European countries, namely the U.K. and France, who have reinstated some lockdown measures to help curb the virus spread.
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