New U.S. vaccine boost, Omicron boosts “rage” By Reuters

By Doina Chiacu and David Brunnstrom

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. health officials have urged Americans to take boosters, wear masks and be careful when traveling during the winter holidays, the Omicron variant is around the world and is likely to be the main strain in the United States. States.

The government is preparing for the next phase of the fight in a two-year battle against a virus that has killed 800,000 people and disrupted all aspects of daily life.

Dr. Francis Collins, director of the National Institutes of Health, told CBS’s “Face the Nation” that the number of Omicron cases will rise in the next two weeks.

“Today’s big message is that if you’ve had a vaccine and a booster, you’re very well protected from getting a serious illness from Omicron. for the week. Don’t wait, ”he said.

Omicron is proliferating rapidly, making vaccines and booster shots against COVID-19 more crucial than ever, Dr. Anthony Fauci, a senior White House medical adviser, said Sunday. Currently, 27% of the U.S. population has not received a single dose of vaccine, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

“It’s raging around the world,” Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, told NBC’s “Meet the Press.”

Omicron has been found in 43 of the 50 U.S. states https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/variants/omicron-variant.html and so far in about 90 countries.

The number of cases doubles in 1.5 to 3 days https://www.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/omicron-cases-doubling-15-3-days-areas-with-local-spread-who-2021 In areas with -12-18 community transmission, the World Health Organization said on Saturday.

In some parts of the United States, 50% of genetically engineered COVID tests detected the Omicron variant, Fauci told CNN, “which means it will assume.”

The virus forces the sports team to reschedule games and entertainment venues to cancel shows. The National Basketball Association https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-nba-idCAKBN2IY0HS postponed five more games on Sunday.

In New York, Mayor Bill de Blasio asked residents to get a vaccine or booster and the city would spend $ 10 million on an advertising campaign to promote it.

Colorado Gov. Jared Polis, meanwhile, told NBC he was considering completely changing the definition of the vaccine in his state from two to three shots. “I wish they could stop talking as a booster. It’s really a three-dose vaccine,” he said.

BOOSTERS, TESTS, WITCH GROUPS

President Joe Biden is scheduled to give a speech on the rise in COVID cases on Tuesday, giving his message to vaccinated Americans to receive a shot and a boost to those who are vaccinated.

Part of Biden’s strategy is to step up testing, Fauci told CNN’s “State of the Union.”

“We really need to overwhelm the system with testing. We need to make testing available to anyone who wants it,” he said.

Hospitals in some parts of the country are already being squeezed by COVID patients and things could get worse, health officials said.

“The government is ready to start sending it properly to the very tough places today and the president will say more about it in a speech on Tuesday,” Collins said.

Neither Fauci nor Collins were asked by vaccinated Americans to cancel their travel plans – to wear a mask all the time at airports, planes, trains, and buses.

“I’m not saying you shouldn’t travel, but you should do it carefully,” Collins said.