Florida confirms 1st case of Brazil COVID-19 variant - WPLG Local 10

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – Florida has reported its first case of the P.1 COVID-19 variant that was first detected out of Brazil, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says.

The CDC’s latest data shows just five verified cases of that variant in the United States. Two cases are in Minnesota; Maryland and Oklahoma also have one case apiece.

The CDC does not specify where in a state that variants were located. Local 10 News has requested from state health officials where the Brazil variant case was found in Florida, but that has not been provided.

The Brazilian variant was first identified in four travelers who were tested at an airport outside Tokyo, Japan. It contains a set of mutations that may affect its ability to be recognized by antibodies, according to the CDC.

Florida continues to have the most confirmed case of the B.1.1.7 variant out of the United Kingdom.

The state has 433 cases out of 1,523 confirmed nationwide by the CDC.

The Florida Department of Health has said that one of the reasons the state has identified the most U.K. variant cases is because doctors here are doing more sequencing to look for it. Those efforts include samples being checked by University of Miami researchers.

FDOH did release updated numbers for the counties where the B.1.1.7 variant cases have been found in the state, and the highest concentration remains in South Florida:

Broward: 115

Miami-Dade: 68

Palm Beach: 49

Hillsborough: 38

Pinellas: 32

Pasco: 19

Orange: 14

Seminole: 11

Marion: 9

Osceola: 9

Brevard: 9

St. Lucie: 6

Hernando: 6

Lake: 5

Collier: 5

Alachua: 5

Lee: 4

Polk: 4

Volusia: 4

Suwannee: 3

Leon: 3

Martin: 2

Charlotte: 2

Flagler: 2

Hendry: 2

Okaloosa: 1

Citrus: 1

Levy: 1

Sumter: 1

Escambia: 1

Duval: 1

Indian River: 1

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