Colorado Identifies First Known US Case of UK Covid-19 Variant | CNN

(CNN) ––

Colorado health officials announced Tuesday the first known case in the United States of the covid-19 variant originally discovered in the United Kingdom.

Covid-19 variant B.1.1.7 was identified in a Colorado man in his 20s with no travel history, Colorado Governor Jared Polis said in a statement Tuesday.

Polis said the man is isolated in Elbert County and will remain in isolation until cleared by health officials.

Close contacts of the man have not yet been identified.

However, health officials work on contact tracing, he added.

"There is much we do not know about this new variant of covid-19, but scientists in the UK are warning the world that it is significantly more contagious," said Polis.

"The health and safety of Coloradans is our top priority and we will closely monitor this case, as well as all indicators of COVID-19, very closely."

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