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President Joe Biden issued a warning on Thursday that the Omicron strain of the coronavirus will begin to spread far more quickly in the United States, urging Americans to be vaccinated or increase their immunity.
“The only genuine defence is to get your vaccine,” he warned, warning that those who are not vaccinated will face “a winter of terrible illness and death.”
As the latest chapter of the nightmare that is the coronavirus pandemic unfolds, he said as America grows increasingly concerned.
The daily average of new infection cases was 86,000 as of December 1. It had risen to 117,000 on December 14, representing a 35 percent increase.
Biden emphasised the need of booster shots for individuals who have already been vaccinated, as well as the first injection for those who have not yet been vaccinated.
On Thursday, G7 health ministers appealed for international cooperation in the face of the Omicron strain, which they described as the “most contemporary threat to world public health.”
The new variant-related outbreak has expanded throughout the world, and more European countries are enacting travel restrictions as a result.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the United States, the world’s worst-affected country, is currently experiencing 1,150 Covid-19 deaths every day .
The United States appears to be in for a difficult winter.
Due to an increasing number of positive tests among theatrical groups, Broadway performances are being cancelled.
Tools ‘Are in Use’
To try to stem the spread of the virus, major US universities are switching to online classrooms and assessments.
After 100 or so players tested positive since the start of the week, the National Football League has implemented tighter health controls. The NBA has also been affected by the postponement of games.
There has been a shift in tone at the White House as well.
Biden assured Americans a few weeks ago that the new HIV strain was not cause for concern.
At the close of a pandemic meeting on Thursday, he called reporters in to deliver a direct message to Americans: those who have been vaccinated should get a booster, and those who have not been vaccinated should get their vaccinations, he declared flatly.
Deputy White House spokesperson Karine Jean-Pierre had previously stated that the government does not expect to impose specific restriction measures at this time and instead will focus on immunisation.
“We are just going to keep pushing forward… to get Americans vaccinated and boosted,” she said, adding that “the tools that we have, we know are working.”
On December 2, Biden, who was elected primarily on a promise to address America’s health-care crisis, revealed a strategy to prevent a sharp increase in infections, hospitalizations, and mortality.
However, recognising the sensitivity of the situation, he refrained from implementing more stringent steps.
Americans, like the rest of the world, are fed up with the pandemic, and Republicans consistently oppose requiring people to receive vaccines or wear masks.
When the Omicron strain was discovered a few weeks ago, the US halted travel from many southern African countries but did not impose any extra restrictions, and domestic aircraft were not subjected to any additional health procedures.
In any case, Biden’s moving flexibility is limited, as evidenced by the several lawsuits that have stalled his order requiring larger corporations to vaccinate their employees.
According to the Johns Hopkins University tracker, the United States has passed 800,000 Covid deaths on Tuesday.
This figure exceeds the population of certain states, such as Alaska and North Dakota.
Approximately 450,000 individuals have died from Covid this year, the majority of whom were unvaccinated despite the availability of effective and free vaccines in the spring.
