As coronavirus cases decline and states lift restrictions, the potential end-stage of the U.S. campaign to defeat COVID-19 is getting very complicated, as one variant is gaining ground and lotteries and other incentives are failing. persuade some Americans to get vaccinated against the disease.
“The last half, the last mile, the last quarter mile always takes more effort,” said Dr. Nirav Shah, director of the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention.
As two of the states hardest hit by the pandemic, California and New York, celebrated their reopens this week with fireworks and a multi-million dollar raffle, hospitalizations in parts of Missouri are on the rise and cases are increasing significantly in Texas. , illustrating the challenges the nation faces heading into the summer.
One of the main concerns is the delta variant that originated in India, which is highly contagious and potentially much more serious. Although health authorities said the vaccines are effective against it, the fear is that it will cause outbreaks in states with low inoculation rates.
The delta variant has increased from 2.7% of all cases in May to 9.7% this month, said Dr. Rochelle Walensky, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. ), during a call with governors Monday, according to information provided by the Washington state governor’s office.
Meanwhile, states are convening focus groups to better understand who is refusing to inoculate, why they are doing it, and how to convince them that getting the vaccine is the right thing to do.
“It’s a race between getting people vaccinated and current or future variants,” said Dr. Lee Norman, Kansas health secretary.
The average number of deaths and cases per day has decreased by 90% or more in the United States since the winter. But the picture is uneven.
In Texas, the moving average of new infections has risen from about 1,000 a day on May 31 to nearly 2,000 this week.
A swath of Missouri is seeing a sharp rise in cases and hospitalizations after tourists, eager to get out after being locked up for a year, head to popular destinations like Branson and the Lake of the Ozarks.
Health authorities said more than 200 people were hospitalized with the virus in the southwestern part of the state, almost double the number reported in early May. The number of patients in intensive care in the region has tripled.
Health experts mentioned two factors that are driving the rebound in that area: the most widely spread delta variant and the reluctance of residents to get vaccinated.
The United States is set to miss President Joe Biden’s goal of 70% of American adults having at least one dose of the vaccine by July 4. The figure is currently at 65%.
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