Permanent disinfection measures must be implemented as “variants of concern” spread globally

Higher transmission levels with significant replication of SARS-CoV-2 on a global scale more of the variants of concern will inevitably occur and the more infectious variants will dominate. With international mobility, these variants will spread.

Dr. Scott Gottlieb, Former Commissioner of Food and Drugs stated “unlike smallpox which was successfully eradicated in the U.S. It is “possible” to eliminate Covid in the U.S. but it appears unlikely,” Gottlieb stated. Even the World Health Organization (WHO) has warned the coronavirus vaccine alone will not end pandemic and adjustments will have to be made. Part of these adjustments should be to implement technologies which help maintain healthy, clean air. This is where a UV commercial air purification system within a room or area would be beneficial.

SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19 will continue to mutate which will require permanent adjustments and measures to minimize the spread of COVID as new variants emerge. The WHO further commented, “world leaders and the public must learn to manage the virus and make permanent adjustments to their daily lives to bring the virus down to low levels”.

A US government interagency group developed a Variant Classification scheme that defines three classes of SARS-CoV-2 variants:
• Variant of Interest
• Variant of Concern
• Variant of High Consequence
What are ‘variants of concern’?
Genetic mutations of viruses like SARS-CoV-2 emerge frequently, but some variants are labeled “variants of concern,” because they can re-infect people who have had a previous infection or vaccination or are more transmissible which can lead to a more severe disease.

There are currently at least three documented SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern:
B.1.351, first reported in South Africa in December 2020
B.1.1.7, first reported in the United Kingdom in December 2020
P.1, first identified in Japan among travelers from Brazil in January 2021.

Similar mutations are occurring in different countries simultaneously which means even border controls and high vaccination rates cannot necessarily protect countries from in-country variants. At the end of 2020 it was hoped that the high levels of vaccination would see the world finally gain the upper hand over SARS-CoV-2, the virus that produces COVID-19. In this scenario, the virus would then be controlled at low levels without further societal disruption or a sizeable number of deaths.

However, since then multiple “variants of concern” have emerged and have spread worldwide it has hindered pandemic control efforts and a new emphasis should be put on more permanent measures such as indoor air purification systems.