Georgia reports 1st case of UK COVID-19 variant

The Georgia Department of Public Health on Tuesday announced an 18-year-old man has contracted the state’s first known case of the U.K. COVID-19 variant.

According to the health department, the Georgia resident has no travel history and is isolating at home. It’s working to identify people who he was in close contact with and those people will be monitored and tested for the variant.

The health department says the COVID-19 variant is significantly more contagious. So far, there’s no evidence that the variant causes more severe illness or an increased risk of death.

On Thursday, the Florida Department of Health said it found evidence of the first identified case of the UK variant in the state.