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Delta COVID-19 Variant Confirmed In Y-K Delta

Katie Basile
/
KYUK

The first case of the highly contagious Delta variant of the COVID-19 virus has been confirmed in the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta. The state informed the Yukon-Kuskokwim Health Corporation of the case on June 21. YKHC said that the person tested positive for the Delta variant in mid-June and is no longer infectious. YKHC identified people who had been in close contact with the person who tested positive and asked the unvaccinated contacts to test and quarantine.

YKHC urges everyone to get vaccinated against the virus. So does Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation’s lead infectious disease expert.

 

Fauci held a White House COVID-19 Response Team press briefing on June 22. He said that the COVID-19 vaccines are highly effective against the Delta variant. This variant is more contagious, and is associated with a greater risk of severe disease and hospitalization compared to the dominant variants in the U.S. Fauci said that the Delta variant currently makes up about 20.6% of COVID-19 cases in the U.S., and its numbers are doubling every two weeks. He called the Delta variant “the greatest threat in the USA to the elimination of COVID-19.”

Anna Rose MacArthur served as KYUK's News Director from 2015-2022.
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