Vietnam’s health minister is blaming a new, more infectious strain of coronavirus for its recent spike in infections, according to Business Insider.
On Sunday, Nguyen Thanh Long said that patients infected with the new strain have infected five to six people on average, compared to 1.8 to 2.2, with the original strain of the coronavirus.
The mutated strain of coronavirus has been seen in Bangladesh, Britain, and Ireland but is new to Vietnam.
Vietnam experienced a 99-day streak without any new cases reported, which ended on July 25, and since then, 204 new cases have been identified.
There are multiple strains of coronavirus, and mutations are common in viruses. Mutations do not always result in viruses become more dangerous, and there is little evidence that they are more infectious than the original.
