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While the variant does not appear to cause more severe disease in people who are infected, it could lead to more hospitalizations as a result of an increase in cases.
New York State Governor Andrew Cuomo said on Tuesday that negative COVID-19 test results should be required not only for travelers from the United Kingdom but those from all countries, as infections of the British strain have been found in four U.S. states.
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"How many times does the fed gov't have to learn the same lesson? They should require all international travelers to test negative before entering the U.S.," he tweeted.
"We reached an agreement with carriers to require testing for NY-bound UK travelers. The fed gov'erment must expand it to all countries," he added.
Earlier on Tuesday, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio tweeted that "It's time to stop the half measures. It's time for a travel ban on the United Kingdom."
"This new variant is tremendously troubling. We need to buy ourselves time to get the vaccinations done and protect our residents. Let's shut down the danger right now," he added.
New York State reported on Monday its first case of the more contagious variant of the coronavirus. The case was identified in a 60-year-old man from Saratoga County who had no travel history.
New York is the fourth state in the country that has confirmed infection of the new strain, which has also been found in California, Florida, and Colorado.
Around 1 in 3 people with #Covid-19 show no symptoms, so will spread it without knowing. The new strain of #coronavirus spreads much more quickly, so it’s more important than ever for us all to protect others by observing the hands, face and space rules. https://t.co/eqCQ4Zi8hc pic.twitter.com/iIWsmy8ngY
— Gedling Borough Council (@GedlingBC) January 6, 2021
The variant is thought to be more transmissible but does not appear to make people more ill or increase the risk of death from COVID-19, experts have said.
While the variant does not appear to cause more severe disease in people who are infected and current vaccines should still work against it, it could lead to more hospitalizations as a result of an increase in cases, said the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) last week.
In late December, the CDC implemented an order that requires air passengers arriving in the United States from the United Kingdom to test negative, no more than 72 hours before departure.
As of Tuesday afternoon, the Johns Hopkins University reported 38,741 coronavirus deaths in New York State, the worst in the United States, a country which has recorded over 20.9 million cases and 355,600 related deaths so far.
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