Delta variant expected to make up 90% of new Covid-19 cases in Europe by late August, already 10 % in France

Delta variant on track to make up 90% of new Covid-19 cases in Europe by late August The Delta variant is on track to make up 90% of new cases of Covid-19 in the European Union by the end of August, the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control warned in a threat assessment published Wednesday. By <a href="/profiles/meg-wagner">Meg Wagner</a>, <a href="/profiles/melissa-mahtani">Melissa Mahtani</a>, Melissa Macaya, Mike Hayes and <a href="/profiles/veronica-rocha">Veronica Rocha</a>, CNN CNN

The Delta variant is on track to make up 90% of new cases of Covid-19 in the European Union by the end of August, the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control warned in a threat assessment published Wednesday.

The variant, first identified in India and scientifically labeled B.1.617.2, is 40% to 60% more transmissible than the Alpha variant first identified in England, the ECDC said.

A single dose of a two-dose vaccine appears to offer less protection against the variant than it would against other strains, the agency said, regardless of which vaccine is used.

Full vaccination does appear to offer nearly the same protection against the Delta variant as other variants, the threat assessment said.

Because of that transmission advantage, models suggest it will make up 70% of new European cases by early August, rising to 90% by the end of the month, the agency said.

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