Last Updated Sunday, January 24, 2021 6:02AM EST The United Kingdom COVID-19 variant has been identified at a Barrie long-term care home coping with a massive outbreak of the virus. Simcoe Muskoka District Health Unit (SMDHU) confirmed that six COVID-19 cases from Roberta Place Long-Term Care Home have been identified as the highly contagious coronavirus variant. The cases are among five residents and one employee. As of Saturday, 127 residents have tested positive for the virus, along with 84 staff members, which represents half of the workers who helped respond to the outbreak, SMDHU Medical Officer of Health Dr. Charles Gardner said during a virtual press conference Saturday afternoon.
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COVID-19 Variant Found at Barrie Long-Term Care Home
Testing continues to confirm exact variant strain
A COVID-19 variant has been detected by health authorities at a Barrie long-term care home which is currently experiencing the virus outbreak. Testing continues to determine the exact variant strain.
Preliminary laboratory testing has identified a COVID-19 variant in six swabs at Roberta Place, a long-term care home in Barrie, Ontario, according to the Simcoe Muskoka District Health Unit (SMDHU).
“The variant strain testing is a two part test, and at this time, the first test which looks for a particular 501 mutation is positive and indicates a very high probability that they are of a variant strain of concern,” SMDHU said in a news release on Wednesday.