Delta Plus: As U.S. grapples with Delta variant, India raises alarm over a new COVID strain mutated from it

New Delhi — Doctors and epidemiologists are closely monitoring the rise of yet another coronavirus variant that has been detected in almost a dozen countries, including the U.S.  Concern that the so-called Delta Plus variant — a mutation of the now-widespread Delta strain first detected in India — could be more infectious and cause more significant health problems than other variants prompted Indian officials this week to label it a "variant of concern."

But while the variant's fast spread, and India's painful experience with the original Delta strain, have raised alarm in the vast nation, epidemiologists there and abroad say much more data is needed before broader cautions are issued around the world about Delta Plus. Delta Plus cases are mounting fast in India, but the strain has also been detected in the U.S., U.K., China, Japan, Russia, Portugal, Switzerland, and Poland.