Vaccines and booster shots are the key to downgrading Covid from a pandemic emergency to an endemic status next year, says top U.S. disease specialist.
Top infectious diseases public official Dr. Anthony Fauci said that if the U.S. ramps up its Covid vaccine rates, as well as if a third dose of the vaccine is administered across the country, that the country has a chance to get Covid under control by next year.
In the U.S., more than 70 percent of adults are fully vaccinated, either with a double dose or with a Johnson & Johnson single dose. Booster shots, or a third dose, are currently available on a limited basis, mostly only to those with a higher risk of serious Covid complications or because of their employment status at a high-risk area. Fauci has encouraged that boosters become available for everyone.
Fauci even went as far to say that having three doses may become the new standard for being considered “fully vaccinated.”
Some states have begun pushing ahead of the federal timeline for booster offerings, giving shots to an expanded set of the population. In some areas of the U.S., any adult can receive a booster as long as it’s been six months after their second shot.
With winter quickly approaching and Covid cases on the rise, the top doctor has warned that vaccines may have a waning immunity. Combined with the high transmission rate that the Delta variant has, Fauci warned of a “double whammy” for the upcoming cold season, even for those who are fully vaccinated.
Federal data reports that the national average for new cases a day has increased to more than 80,000. This makes it the highest number that it’s been in nearly a month. Of America’s 52 states, 40 are qualified as “high transmission.”
Hospitalizations have also increased for the first time in nearly two and a half months.
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