The first confirmed U.S. case of the omicron coronavirus variant has been detected in San Francisco.
The person – who is fully vaccinated San Francisco resident – traveled back to the Bay Area from South Africa on Nov. 22 and tested positive on Monday.
"We knew that it was only a matter of time until the omicron variant was detected in our city, and the work that we have done to this point has prepared us to handle this variant," San Francisco Mayor London Breed said. "We continue to encourage everyone to get vaccinated, get boosted, and take steps to keep each other safe."
The unidentified patient has a mild case.
They're currently self-quarantining and have been since testing positive, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Officials said the patient's close contacts have tested negative.
"It's just the tip of the iceberg like many of us suspect," said Dr. Peter Chin-Hong, UCSF infectious disease physician, told KCBS Radio's Rebecca Corral moments after the announcement. "It's pretty much in short order that we'll see scores of cases detected, not just in California but across the country."
Genomic sequencing was conducted at UCSF and confirmed by the CDC.
The City of San Francisco initially said the patient came back to the U.S. on Nov. 22, which officials later corrected. At a news conference in the Central Valley promoting vaccinations and booster shots, California Gov. Gavin Newsom said the individual landed in the U.S. on Nov. 22, developed symptoms over the weekend and was tested on Sunday before a positive COVID-19 test came back on Monday.
"California is continuing to monitor the variant's presence and progress through the state's robust Whole Genome Sequencing surveillance," explained a joint statement on Wednesday from the California and San Francisco Departments of Public Health. "We must remain vigilant against this variant, but it is not a cause for panic."
The omicron variant, B.1.1.529, has been designated a "variant of concern" by the World Health Organization. Speaking on Monday, President Joe Biden warned "we're going to see cases of this variant in the United States," but also urged that the variant is "not a cause for panic." Biden continues to push for all Americans to either get vaccinated or boosted as soon as possible.
The Biden administration has restricted travel from Southern Africa where the variant was first identified and is widespread among confirmed cases.
"There's still a lot we don't know about omicron," Dr. Grant Colfax, San Francisco health director, said at a press briefing at San Francisco City Hall on Wednesday. He later said the city doesn't anticipate changing COVID-19 mandates and restrictions "at this time."
The U.S. joins more than 20 countries and territories around the world that have detected the variant so far, some with no direct links to travel.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
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