Researches have found that new COVID-19 variants can be more transmissible, stronger, and could also be somewhat more resistant to vaccines.

“At this level of cases, with variants spreading, we stand to completely lose the hard-earned ground we have gained,” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention director Dr. Rochelle Walensky said during a White House briefing Monday. “These variants are a very real threat to our people and our progress.”

Wearing masks, social distancing, and getting vaccinated are the best ways to prevent the creation of new variants.

Experts first identified the new variants in the United Kingdom, and South Africa, but they are also sounding the alarm on new variants found closer to home, in Brazil, New York, and California.

To read more about what's known about the newer emerging variants and why health experts are worried about them, click here on the USA TODAY article.