Coronavirus infections are rising, warn top Biden health officials
Covid-19 is still present in the US and cases are rising as the country heads towards the summer season.
Since its peak in February, covid-19 has rather taken a backseat in many people’s minds. War in Ukraine, high inflation, and general economic turmoil have been the stories which have dominated the news in the last three months. It is only fitting that covid-19 make yet another resurgence amongst the other problems.
Since the start of April, the number of new covid-19 cases has been rising. More than 32 percent of Americans now live in counties with medium to high levels of virus transmission, compared with about 24 percent the previous week. The states worst affected at this stage are on the east coast, particularly New York so far, New York Mayor Adams has refused to reintroduce measures to tackle the spread.
Though nowhere near the speed of the rise in cases seen over winter 2021, it has healthcare experts concerned for the health of Americans.
Head of the CDC Dr. Rochelle Walensky said in a tweet, “Communities should encourage the use of prevention strategies, including masking and increasing access to testing and treatment, based on community levels.”
“The attitude is, ‘We’ve got this, we’re over it.’” said Dr. Eric Topol, a professor of molecular medicine at Scripps Research in San Diego. “People should be gearing up, they should be getting booster shots. But there is no awareness.”
“As absolutely uncomfortable and unsatisfactory as this is, we just don’t know what this virus is going to throw at us in the next 90 days,” said Michael T. Osterholm, director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota.
Cases and hospitalisations are increasing, according to CDC data, though deaths are yet to catch up.
How many people are vaccinated?
As of May 20, 66 percent of people in the US are vaccinated, around 220 million people. However, this number has only slightly been creeping up since January. Authorities are worried that the amount of time between doses means the powers of the vaccine will have worn off.
Children over the age of 5 are now being recommended booster jabs. Children between ages 5 and 17 are the group which has the lowest vaccination rate, and the CDC will be hoping they can boost this is in the coming weeks.
In total, 102 million booster jabs have been issued in the US. While a large number, this represents only 46.4 percent of the country. The White House will need to organise its messaging if it wants to raise this figure.