SAN FRANCISCO (KNX) — A person in California became the first in the U.S. to have an identified case of the omicron variant of COVID-19, San Francisco health officials confirmed Wednesday.
The person – who is fully vaccinated – traveled back to the Bay Area from South Africa on Nov. 22 and tested positive on Monday, Dr. Anthony Fauci said in a briefing at the White House on Wednesday.
It comes as scientists continue to study the risks posed by the new strain of the virus.
"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. "It's pretty much in short order that we'll see scores of cases detected, not just in California but across the country."
The Biden administration moved late last month to restrict travel from Southern Africa where the variant was first identified and had been widespread. Clusters of cases have also been identified in about two dozen other nations. The official could not discuss the matter publicly and spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention was moving to tighten U.S. testing rules for travelers from overseas, including requiring a test for all travelers within a day of boarding a flight to the U.S. regardless of vaccination status. It was also considering mandating post-arrival testing.
Officials said those measures would only “buy time” for the country to learn more about the new variant and to take appropriate precautions, but that given its transmissibility its arrival in the U.S. was inevitable.
The Associated Press and KCBS Radio contributed to this report.
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