In the past week, the daily number of cases and deaths has increased an average of about 2% compared to the week before, CDC director Rochelle Walensky said at a White House press conference, to about 67,000 cases a day and 2,000 American lives. lost to the virus every day. It’s nearly a third of what the US saw during the holiday peak, but still no better than what the US saw during the summer peak.
“With these new statistics, I am really concerned about reports that more states are rolling back the exact public health measures we have recommended to protect people from COVID-19,” Walensky said. “I understand the temptation to do this – 70,000 cases a day seems fine compared to where we were just a few months ago – but we can’t settle for 70,000 cases a day, 2,000 daily deaths.”
This leveling off comes as states across the country, led by Democrats and Republicans alike, have relaxed restrictions from harsh measures put in place during the Gulf, such as orders to stay home in California or shut down indoor dining in New York. on the loosest rules since the start of the pandemic, such as in Montana and Iowa, where governors have lifted mask mandates and rolled back restrictions on corporations.
Arkansas and Texas are also considering withdrawing their mask mandates in the coming weeks.
Walensky, formerly the head of Infectious Diseases at Massachusetts General Hospital, made a focused plea to all states on Monday: “Please hear me clearly. At this level of cases where variants are spreading, we will completely lose the hard-earned soil we have. won, ”she said.
“These variants pose a very real threat to our people and to our progress. Now is not the time to relax the critical precautions that we know can stop the spread of COVID-19 in our communities, not when we are this close. she said.
Walensky urged people to keep pushing things back, as the US has usually done since early January – although certain parts of the country, such as Texas and Florida, have seen a revival in recent weeks.
There’s no reason the cases have leveled off, but infectious disease epidemiologist and ABC News contributor John Brownstein said it could be a combination of factors including relaxed mitigation efforts or complacency, as well as a drop in testing allowing people to unknowingly spread the disease. virus and perhaps the cold snap in southern states like Texas that prompted people to rally inside.
Brownstein also pointed to the increasing prevalence of the B.1.1.7 variant, which originates in the UK and is about 50% more transmissible.
“Clearly there is a lot of enthusiasm to get back to normal and I think we should try to do everything we can,” said Brownstein. “But for certain activities that we know are conducive to transmission, we have to wait a little longer.”
Walensky, chief medical advisor Dr. Anthony Fauci and other public health experts have been warning for weeks that withdrawing mitigation before cases reach a more manageable level could lead to the same wave the US saw after a patchwork of reopenings, largely in the South. , wiped out much of the progress of the near-nationwide shutdown of March and April.
“We have the opportunity to stop a possible fourth wave of cases in this country. Please remain strong in your beliefs, continue to wear your well-fitting mask and take the other public health preventative measures that we know work,” Walensky said.
Before the news of the plateau statistics, most of the US experienced a sharp downward trajectory that coincided with the approval of a third coronavirus vaccine developed by Johnson & Johnson and approved by the FDA over the weekend.
On Monday, 3.9 million doses of the latest vaccine were shipped, requiring only one dose compared to the double doses required for the Pfizer or Moderna vaccines. Sixteen million additional doses will be available by the end of March, although the White House prepared states for an unequal distribution in the first few weeks as the company gets production off the ground.
And as of Monday, 50 million Americans had received at least one dose of the other available vaccines, Pfizer and Moderna, according to the White House.
All three vaccines are safe and effective against the virus and its variants, including the B.1.1.7 variant, which was originally discovered in the UK. The variant is about 50% more transmittable, and scientists expect it to be the dominant strain in the US. in mid-March, making the race to vaccinate a majority of Americans more urgent.
The White House urged Americans to get the vaccine that is available to them when it is their turn.
“All three vaccines have been shown to be safe and highly effective in preventing serious illness and hospitalization and death from COVID-19 after full immunity,” said Dr. Marcella Nunez-Smith, the chair of the White House Health Equality Task Force.
“And if I could leave people with one message, it’s this: Get vaccinated. With the first vaccine available to you. Protect yourself, your family and your community from COVID-19,” she said.