COVID Metrics Continue To Fall; White House Says ‘We Are On The Right Track’
22391 new coronavirus cases were reported in the United States on Sunday, taking the national total to 333,476,781. This is far lower than the 7-day average of 41057.
246 new deaths were reported in the country on the same day, which is just one third of the weekly average of 667. With this, the COVID death toll in the U.S. increased to 595,812.
As usual, the lower COVID metrics at the weekend are attributed to lag in reporting from states.
The seven-day average of hospital admissions is 4,640, which is 8 percent lesser than the previous week.
The seven-day average in new cases per day shows a decrease of about 13 percent from the prior seven-day average. “Another hopeful sign that we are on the right track,” CDC director Dr. Rochelle Walensky said at a routine briefing on the pandemic update.
“We have a long way to go to get young Americans vaccinated. Only about one fifth of 18- to 29-year-olds and less than one third of 30- to 39-year-olds are fully vaccinated,” she told reporters. By contrast, more than two thirds of people over the age of 65 are already fully vaccinated, Walensky added.
The White House COVID-19 Response Team claimed that the Biden administration’s rigorous vaccination campaign is curbing the spread of COVID-19 in the United States, saving tens of thousands of lives, and allowing millions to start living life more normally.
By the weekend, the U.S. Government hit two significant milestones in its vaccination program: 150 million Americans received at least their first shot and 110 million Americans were fully vaccinated.
Soon, all people in the country will be able to get vaccinated without an appointment at the vast majority of nearly 40,000 local pharmacy locations nationwide.
Rite Aid, Walmart and Sam’s Club, Meijer and Hy-Vee, Southeastern, and H-E-B have announced that they are offering walk-up vaccinations at all of their locations nationwide — more than 20,000 stores in communities across the country.
To reach people where they are, FEMA is shifting from the high-volume vaccination centers to smaller, community-based sites and expanding the number of mobile clinics.
White House COVID-19 Response Coordinator Jeff Zients said that when the FDA issued emergency use authorization of the Pfizer vaccine for children aged 12 to 15, more than 15,000 local pharmacies will be ready to vaccinate people in this age group.
As India continues struggling to contain the COVID-19 second wave, another 366,161 cases and 3754 related deaths were reported on Sunday.
Only less than 3 percent of India’s population is fully vaccinated, the Health Ministry said in a press release.
Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga said it is up to the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to decide whether to go ahead with the Tokyo Olympics, which is rescheduled to begin on July 23.
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