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Washington – Dr Rochelle Walensky, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), issued a dire warning of a sense of “impending doom” as coronavirus infections and hospitalizations accelerate and begged Americans not to not abandon mitigation measures.
During a briefing by the White House COVID-19 response team and public health officials, Walensky said the nation’s response to the coronavirus pandemic was continuing, with an increase in the number of infections, hospitalizations and deaths. The number of coronavirus cases in the United States has exceeded 30.2 million, according to Johns Hopkins University.
“I’m going to take a break here, I’m going to lose the script and I’m going to reflect on the recurring feeling I have of impending doom,” Walensky said, appearing to get emotional. “We have so much to look forward to. So much promise and potential from where we are and so much to hope for. But right now I’m scared.”
Walensky said the trajectory of the pandemic in the United States followed European countries like Germany, Italy and France, which have seen a “constant and worrying spike in cases.”
“We are not helpless. We can change this trajectory of the pandemic,” she said. “But it will take all of us to re-commit to following preventive public health strategies consistently as we work to get the American public vaccinated.”
The American people, Walensky continued, must work together to prevent a further surge in cases.
“I’m speaking today not necessarily as the director of CDC, and not just as the director of CDC, but as a wife, as a mother, as a daughter, to ask you to just hold on for a bit. longer, ”she said. . “I want to be done so badly, I know you all want to be done so badly, we’re almost there, but not quite yet. And so, I ask you to hold on a little longer, to get vaccinated when you can, so that all of these people we all love are still around when this pandemic ends. “
Walensky’s sense of apprehension comes as some governors have moved to ease restrictions aimed at mitigating the spread of the coronavirus, including the lifting of mask warrants, as more people are vaccinated. States like Florida saw an increase in visitors over spring break, while the Transportation Security Administration reported an increase in air travelers this month.
But public health officials have warned the nation is at risk of yet another surge in coronavirus infections, attributed to an increase in travel, a cancellation of restrictions and new variants detected in the United States.
“When you come down from a big peak and you hit a point and start to level off, once you stay on that plateau you’re really in danger of a skyrocket,” Dr Anthony Fauci, Chief Medical Advisor President Biden said in an interview with “Face the Nation” on Sunday. “And unfortunately, this is what we are starting to see.”
Walensky said new cases were stagnant, but there had been a steady increase, now between 60,000 and 70,000 new infections a day, over the past week, which could lead to a larger spike.
The CDC director added that some states are opening up to levels not recommended by public health officials, and she plans to speak to governors on Tuesday to urge them to “linger while trying to refrain from doing so.” open too quickly ”.
The Biden administration has worked to speed up the pace of vaccinations by sending doses directly to retail pharmacies and community health centers. More than 93 million Americans have received at least one dose of their vaccines and 51.5 million are fully vaccinated, according to the CDC.
Still, Andy Slavitt, the White House’s senior adviser on the COVID-19 response, stressed during the briefing that people must continue to monitor public health measures as more vaccines are administered.
“It will be a race between a vaccine and what happens with the dynamics of the epidemic,” he said.
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