Arrivals must also quarantine for 10 days even if fully vaccinated, nation says, as world scrambles to respond to new concerning variant

Discoveries follow suspected case in Belgium, as Europe introduces travel restrictions to curb spread of new COVID strain suspected to be highly contagious

With younger people increasingly coming in for treatment with more serious cases of COVID, doctors fear health systems could become overwhelmed

The ECD notes 'considerable uncertainty related to transmissibility, vaccine effectiveness, risk for reinfections and other properties'

Tablet developed by Merck known as molnupiravir found to halve rate of hospitalizations and deaths in high-risk Covid patients; not recommended for pregnant women

Starting Monday, America will limit travel from South Africa, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Namibia, Lesotho, Eswatini, Mozambique and Malawi; Fauci says more info on variant still needed

Jewish virologist Barry Schoub, who advises the government, says data so far indicates vaccines protect against severe illness from new COVID variant

Officials say it will take weeks to understand implications of newly discovered strain, call for measured action

Airlines, travel stocks and major indexes plunge amid investor uncertainty over potential reversal of progress at getting pandemic under control

Bennett says government 'preparing for every scenario' after 4 four possible cases of highly mutated B.1.1.529 variant detected in country, but no current plans for lockdown