COVID-19 and the new variant strain in England – What are the implications for those from ethnic minority groups?

Two new variants of Severe Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome-Coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) have been reported over a matter of days in the United Kingdom (UK). The first variant, named VUI-202,012/01, originally detected in Kent and London, has an unusually large number of mutations that increase the virus’ affinity for human hosts [1]. The second, named 501Y.V2 was first detected in Nelson Mandela Bay in South Africa [2]. Epidemiological evidence of a sharp rise in Coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) admissions to both UK and South African hospitals along with a rising attributable proportion of cases due to these two variants, suggests that both are significantly more transmissible than previous variants. [Opening paragraph]