South Dakota health officials watching to see if variant COVID-19 strain shows up in the state

So far, the variant strain of the COVID-19 virus discovered in the United Kingdom has not been found in South Dakota.

State epidemiologist Dr. Josh Clayton says they are monitoring the situation.

Clayton says at this point in time, he’s not concerned the UK strain will have a negative impact on vaccine effectiveness.

Vaccination of Phase 1 groups has begun, but Clayton says people still need to continue following COVID-19 safety precautions.

As of today (Jan. 7), nearly 30-thousand South Dakotans have received at least one dose of either the Pfizer or the Moderna vaccination.