In a conference held by the White House COVID-19 Response Team and Public Health Officials on December 10, 2021, the updates were provided on the ongoing state of the pandemic and what measures can be taken to tackle the situations coming ahead.
Booster Shots Important To Combat Omicron
Since the emergence of the pandemic, the United States has been trying hard to deal with it and find effective solutions to curb the rising cases. As the new variant omicron shows its presence, there has been an increase in the cases that is worth noticing according to the World Health Organization.
As per the briefing conducted, the seven-day daily average of cases statistics shows that 118,500 cases are arriving per day which equals to 37℅ increase in the cases and it is a big matter of concern as Christmas festival has arrived.
Everyone remains concerned about what state they are in or will be in. Several groups of scientists and other medical researchers have been working on evaluating the functioning of the omicron variant and people are being made aware continuously by the concerned authorities.
Till December 10, 43 confirmed cases were seen in the United States, and most of the infected people were aged between 18 and 39.
Even after the travel ban from 8 African countries, the biggest concern for the federal government was to stop the entry of the new variant in the States. But out of the total cases, one-third have been detected from international travelers who landed in the United States. Approximately 80 percent of the omicron infected patients in the US were fully vaccinated and 14 out of 34 have got their booster shots done already in the past fourteen days. However, no deaths were reported and only one individual was hospitalized for 2 days.
To keep the state functioning and productive, it is important that the citizens remain healthy and safe. With the emergence of the omicron variant after the Delta variant, the responsibility of the state has increased to protect its entire population.
During the previous briefing, Dr. Fauci discussed that the scientists and researchers don’t have much data on the omicron variant nor it will be possible to present any tough statements with such a small analysis. Moreover, most of the cases are still being caused due to the Delta variant that in itself is a great concern.
Overall, the rates of getting infected and affected by omicron seem to be getting reduced with the help of a booster dose if taken very soon. They have proved to be of great help in combating the spread of delta infection. Even if the infection gets a hold of your immune system, the symptoms appearing will be less severe as compared to those who are neither vaccinated nor have received the booster shot.
Vaccination is the primary source of getting prevented from coronavirus as well as its mutants. Also, following the necessary health guidelines like maintaining social distancing, wearing masks, carrying sanitizers, and keeping them indoors clean is equally important.