Colorado Guardsman has 1st reported US case of virus variant

DENVER (AP) — Health officials say a Colorado National Guard member has the first reported U.S. case of COVID-19 variant and a second case is suspected in another Guard member. Dr. Rachel Herlihy, the state’s epidemiologist, said Wednesday that the two were deployed on Dec. 23 to a nursing home with an outbreak of the virus in a small town outside Denver. She appeared in a virtual briefing with Colorado Gov. Jared Polis, who says the man in his 20s with the confirmed case was recovering in isolation and had mild symptoms. The new and seemingly more contagious variant of the coronavirus was first identified in Britain and has also been found in several other countries.