“We have a lot of the science right now. We have vaccines, and what we can’t really predict is human behavior. Human behavior in this pandemic hasn’t served us very well,” Dr. Rochelle Wansky, the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said.
She believes the coronavirus pandemic will end if humans work together. Walensky said that vaccination is one of the best ways to stop the virus from moving, which will ultimately stop the spread of COVID-19.
The Delta variant, which is considered to be the most harmful COVID variant at the moment, is the main cause of all COVID infections and deaths in the United States.
Right now, around 90% of the United States may have some form of COVID-19 immunity by the time the current delta variant wave finishes, according to Dr. Scott Gottlieb, the former commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration.
“This delta wave is going to surge across the country and hit different regions at different times,” he said. “This may be the last major wave of infection.”
Gottlieb also added that the pandemic may be nearing its end when vaccination is finally approved for children, and more treatments, such as the COVID-19 antiviral pill is approved.
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“I think those two things are going to be the bookend on the pandemic phase of this virus and we’re going to be entering the more endemic phase,” Gottlieb told CNBC.
President Joe Biden has been strong on his stance on vaccinations, speeding up vaccination efforts all around the country. Now, more companies are posing vaccination mandates on their employees and stakeholders.
“When I announced the first requirement, that encouraged businesses to feel they can come in and demand the same thing of their own employees,” Biden said. “More people are getting vaccinated, more lives are being saved.”
President Biden announced a six-point initiative in early September aimed at boosting vaccinations, improving access to testing, and making coronavirus treatments more widely available.
The new mandates cover about 100 million workers or two-thirds of all workers in the U.S. Under the plan, companies with 100 or more employees would have to require their workers to be vaccinated or undergo at least weekly COVID-19 testing.
Keep up with pandemic news here with us at The East County Gazette.
