U.S. Hits Encouraging Milestones on Virus Deaths and Shots

The Associated Press reports, “COVID-19 deaths in the U.S. have dipped below 300 a day for the first time since the early days of the disaster in March 2020, while the drive to put shots in arms hit another encouraging milestone Monday: 150 million Americans fully vaccinated. The U.S. death toll stands at more than 600,000, while the worldwide count is close to 3.9 million, though the real figures in both cases are believed to be markedly higher. About 45% of the U.S. population has been fully vaccinated, according to the CDC. Over 53% of Americans have received at least one dose of vaccine. But U.S. demand for shots has slumped, to the disappointment of public health experts.”

Despite the progress, WebMD Health News reports, “More people need to get vaccinated if the United States wants to prevent the spread of deadly variants this winter, says a top vaccine expert. ‘Vaccines are our only way out of this,’ Paul Offit, MD, a member of the FDA Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee, said on CNN. ‘Unless we vaccinate a significant percentage of the population before winter hits, you're going to see more spread and the creation of more variants, which will only make this task more difficult.’”