COVID-19 becomes a “pandemic of the unvaccinated”

• CDC director Dr Rochelle Walensky said on Friday that 97% of hospitalizations related to COVID-19 are unvaccinated people.
• She warned that the COVID-19 pandemic “is becoming an unvaccinated pandemic.”
• She said outbreaks of the virus are occurring in “areas of the country that have low immunization coverage.”

The director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said on Friday that as cases of COVID-19 increased in the United States, the disease was becoming an “unvaccinated pandemic.”

“There is a crystal clear message: this is becoming a pandemic of the unvaccinated,” CDC director Dr Rochelle Walensky told a press briefing on Friday. “We are seeing outbreaks in parts of the country that have low immunization coverage because unvaccinated people are at risk.”

She added that 97% of hospitalized COVID-19 cases involve people not vaccinated against the virus.

Since last week, Walensky said, cases have increased by about 70%, hospitalizations have increased by 36% and deaths have increased by 26%.

“If you are not vaccinated you are still at risk,” Walensky said.

According to CDC data, 160.4 million people in the United States are fully vaccinated against COVID-19, or 48.3% of the total population.

Among people aged 12 and over eligible for vaccination, 56.5% of people are fully vaccinated.

This is a developing story. Please check for updates.