25 Investigates: Third case of UK COVID-19 variant detected in Mass.

BOSTON — 25 Investigates confirmed with the state Department of Public Health Tuesday that there are now three cases of the U.K. variant of the coronavirus in Massachusetts.

The latest individual, who the DPH was informed of yesterday, is a woman in her 50s who lives in Worcester County and had a known exposure.

It’s been less than one week since the DPH confirmed the second case: a Worcester County man in his 20s who tested positive for the variant. No details on his travel history or where he may have contracted the virus were released.

The first case of the variant was identified in a Boston woman in her 20s, who tested negative for COVID-19 before boarding a flight back to Massachusetts from the United Kingdom, but felt sick upon returning.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said the variant is about 50% more contagious than the other strain that is currently causing the bulk of cases in this country.

Health officials said by March, the new strain will likely become the dominant strain of the coronavirus in the United States. The CDC says there’s no evidence that it causes more severe illness or is transmitted differently so mask wearing, social distancing and hand washing and other prevention strategies can still work.

The Associated Press contributed to this report

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