South Carolina reports first-known U.S. cases of South African COVID variant

What they're saying: "CDC’s recommendations for slowing the spread — wearing masks, staying at least 6 feet apart from others, avoiding crowds, ventilating indoor spaces, and washing hands often — will also prevent the spread of this variant," the agency said.

Driving the news: Vaccine developer Novavax announced the results of the phase 3 United Kingdom trial for its coronavirus vaccine on Wednesday, and the company showed that its shot was 60% effective against the South African variant.

• Novavax reported that the vaccine was 85.6% effective against the variant strain first discovered in the U.K., and 95.6% effective against the original coronavirus strain.

The big picture: Moderna, Pfizer and now Novavax have each reported that their vaccines, while still effective, offer less protection against the South African variant.

• On Monday, Minnesota reported America's first-known case of a Brazilian variant of the coronavirus, which also seems to spread more rapidly than the original disease.
• Multiple states reported their first cases of the U.K. variant in late December 2020.

Go deeper: Coronavirus variants demand a tougher response