White House Covid-19 Response Team briefed Americans about the state of the virus and the nation’s defense against it. Texas and Florida are still reported to be the states with the most cases and hospitalizations, “over the past seven days, Florida and Texas have accounted for about ? of new cases and more than ? of new hospitalizations.”
“These cases are concentrated in communities with low vaccination rates.”
“In seven states alone – Florida, Texas, Missouri, Arkansas, Louisiana, Alabama, Mississippi – states with some of the lowest vaccination rates, account for about half of new cases and new hospitalizations in the past week.”
However, following many initiatives taken by President Biden and other leaders, vaccination rates are on the rise as well.
“Over the past 24 hours, we’ve recorded 864,000 vaccinations, the highest in a day since July 3rd.”
Many Republican leaders have openly announced that they have been vaccinated and are encouraging their state to do the same, such as Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell.
585,000 first doses of the vaccine were recorded to be given out yesterday, the highest since July 1st.
Businesses are also stepping up following Biden’s remarks, both big and small businesses are working towards requiring vaccines for their employees and also requiring proof of vaccination. The company Yelp also added a feature to their website which tells the customer if a certain business has vaccinated employees and if they require proof of vaccination.
Universities and hospitals are also following suit and requiring vaccines for everyone working, learning, and participating in their environments.
The response team also answered questions regarding key aspects of the virus and vaccine rollout. Booster shots will not be announced until proper analysis of the vaccine and its effects have been done, so there is no telling when and if Americans will have to receive a third shot.
During questions of how long they expect Delta to persist and who are the most vulnerable groups, the response team emphasized the importance of getting vaccinated as the greatest and most effective defense against the disease and all it’s variants.