Omicron spreading rapidly in U.S. and could bring punishing wave as soon as January, CDC warns
Top federal health officials warned in a briefing Tuesday morning that the omicron variant is rapidly spreading in the United States and could peak in a massive wave of infections as soon as January, according to new modeling analyzed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The prevalence of omicron jumped sevenfold in a single week, according to the CDC, and at such a pace, the highly mutated variant of the coronavirus could ratchet up pressure on a health system already strained in many places as the delta variant continues its own surge.
The warning of an imminent surge came even as federal officials and some pharmaceutical executives signaled that they don’t currently favor creating an omicron-specific vaccine. Based on the data so far, they say that existing vaccines plus a booster shot are an effective weapon against omicron.
- President Joe Biden and Jill Biden will instead host ‘Holiday Open Houses’ for visitors to view the decorations in the executive mansion instead of parties
- ‘We will host a limited number of Holiday Open Houses, inviting guests to see the Christmas decorations in person,’ Michael LaRosa told DailyMail.com
- Invites have gone out to Capitol Hill for the tours
- Guests are required to attest to vaccination status or show negative COVID test
- Move comes as Omicron cases tripled over the weekend across the nation
- The White House is closed to public tours as part of its coronavirus protocols
- Holiday season is traditionally one of the busiest times for the White House
- Last year, Donald and Melania Trump hosted 20 holiday parties during COVID
- Jill Biden revealed White House holiday decorations two weeks ago with the theme of ‘Gifts from the Heart’
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