“We are in an unprecedented health crisis in this country. Disease is everywhere – the Midwest, the West Coast, the East Coast, the North, the South. Health care workers have been evacuated, hospitals are full,” said Kathleen Sebellius, former health and human services secretary. Told CNN at night.
The Covid-19 vaccine is a “really significant light at the end of the tunnel,” Sebilius said, but it is crucial for Americans to stay awake and follow safety guidelines in the coming months, such as wearing face masks, social distance and avoiding indoor gatherings. .
He said, ‘We have left to take what we have learned in the last eight months and have really put it into practice, so we do not continue this incredible death and disease figure.’
His warning was echoed last week by other leading health officials and experts who warn that while the vaccine may be almost here, there will probably be no meaningful effect in the country until 2021 – and therefore if enough people are vaccinated. .
“Let’s say we get vaccinated 75%, 80% of the population. I believe that if we do it efficiently in the second quarter of 2021, by the end of the summer … we really have enough crowds. May the immune system protect our society so that by the end of 2021, we can be much closer to normalcy, closer to where it was before, “said Dr. Anthony Fauci is a Harvard T.H. Chan said at the School Public Health Virtual Event. Wednesday.
“We want to make sure that the vaccines are actually administered, and we fear that they will not happen,” said Paul Strowsky, who is leading supplies, production and distribution for Operation Operation and Warm Speed. Told.
“We must build trust in the American people,” he said. “We just want to make sure everyone gets this vaccine, because we’ve got our lives back.”
New measures across the country
As the epidemic spreads, local and state leaders continue to tighten controls in hopes of preventing the spread of the virus and its deadly effects.
Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott announced the new solution Wednesday, shutting down all restaurant dining and indoor entertainment such as restaurant Ling Ellis, Pool Hall and Hookah Bar.
In Mississippi, government Tate Reeves has signed a new executive order that moved more counties to the state’s mask mandate list by adding stricter restrictions on indoor and outdoor gatherings – meaning 611 of the state’s 826 counties are under the mask order.
The governor of Indiana said he would require hospitals to postpone or reschedule clean procedures performed in inpatient hospital settings from Dec. 16 to Jan. 3 to maintain the capacity of hospitals.
Governing. Eric Holcombe also announced new caps at social gatherings starting this weekend, including counties in the color zone (determined by 100,000 weekly cases and a seven-day positivity rate).
In Alabama, Gov. K. Ivy announced Wednesday that it would increase House Order in state safe time, which would include statewide mask orders for another six weeks. And North Dakota officials have announced the expansion of two orders that require facial inks and limit capability at bars, restaurants and other event venues.
20 million people could be vaccinated next week
Now, more than half – 53% – of all Americans say they will get the first-generation Covid-19 vaccine as soon as possible, according to new poll results from Axios-Ipsos. That number is up from 51% before Thanksgiving and 38% in early October.
No vaccine has yet been administered by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). But, authorization of emergency use is expected soon and about 20 million people are expected to be vaccinated in the next few weeks, Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar told CNN on Wednesday.
When the FDA “decided not to cut corners” when it decided to authorize the vaccine, Azar said he was convinced that what happened in the UK was “something the FDA sees.”
Vaccination will also now begin in Canada, where health officials on Wednesday announced emergency clearance for Pfizer’s Covid-19 vaccine.
Azar said he is confident that by the end of the second quarter of 2021, any American who wants the vaccine will be able to get it.
“Even though we have such a bright future ahead of us, we are very much concerned about the spread of the virus,” Azar said. “For now, we need to double the steps that can keep us all safe.”
CNN’s Cherry Mossberg, Naomi Thomas, Jamie Lynch, Ganesh Setti, Melissa Alonso and K Jones contributed to the report.
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