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U.S. states will close coronavirus testing and vaccination sites.
Since the winter surge in omicron variants, cases, hospitalizations and deaths have dropped significantly.
The end of the COVID-19 pandemic could bring major upheaval to U.S. healthcare
The New York Times reported Wednesday that Illinois has shut down testing sites and Arizona, Nevada, Hawaii and Ohio have stopped publishing daily COVID-19 data.
Even residential vaccination campaigns — including incentives — have scaled back, even though less than a third of Americans have received booster doses of the COVID-19 vaccine, the publication said.
data Data shared by The Washington Post last week showed Wednesday’s seven-day vaccination average fell to its lowest level since the early days of the program.
Dr. Manjul Shukla transfers a Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine into a syringe, Thursday, Dec. 2, 2021, at a mobile vaccination clinic in Worcester, Massachusetts.
(AP Photo/Stevensonne)
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) data It showed that 217.6 million Americans were fully vaccinated and 97.5 million received booster immunizations.
On Tuesday, federal regulators announced that people 50 and older could get a second booster.
The news came as the White House warned there was no funding for a fourth injection and called on Congress to act to provide additional federal pandemic aid.
While the Biden administration and state and local leaders have taken steps to ease restrictions — such as mask mandates and vaccination requirements — health experts say a return to “normality” is unlikely. Production is possible only with access to critical tools.
President wed said If the pandemic is not over, it “no longer controls our lives” in this “new moment”.
Second COVID reminder photo: What you need to know
Notably, the highly transmissible BA.2 omicron subvariant has spread nationwide and now accounts for more than half of all cases.
“America has the tools to protect its people because of the foundation we’ve laid,” Biden said, even as “cases grow.”
To this end, the President announced the launch of the website COVID.govA “one-stop shop where anyone in America can find what they need to fight the virus: free vaccines and boosters, free home testing, high-quality masks.”
“You can get the most up-to-date information about the level of COVID-19 transmission in your community right away,” including the locations of testing sites to be treated, he said.
The move was first announced in Biden’s State of the Union address.
The president acknowledged that while there has been tremendous progress in the fight against COVID-19, “we have seen the consequences of Congress’ inaction.”
He explained that there is not enough funding for monoclonal antibodies, preventive treatment for immunocompromised people, testing and vaccines “we are also at risk”.
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“Congress, we need to secure additional supplies now. Now. We can’t wait to find ourselves in the middle of another push for action. It’s too late,” Biden warned.
“The consequences of inaction are serious,” he noted. “They only grow over time, but they don’t have to. »