The patient is a resident of Boston in her 20s who had visited the United Kingdom By Matt Murphy • Updated on January 20, 2021 at 7:24 pm NBC Universal, Inc. A second person tested positive Tuesday in Massachusetts with the more contagious variant of COVID-19 first detected in the United Kingdom, Public Health Commissioner Monica Bharel said. Bharel said the case of the B.1.1.7 variant was discovered by the Massachusetts Public Health Laboratory, but she did not offer further details. The first case of the new strain of the coronavirus was detected over the weekend in a female resident of Boston in her 20s who had visited the United Kingdom. Bharel disclosed the new case at Wednesday's meeting of the Public Health Council.