Budapest Post

Cum Deo pro Patria et Libertate
Budapest, Europe and world news

Top Health Official Says US "Failing" On Covid

Top Health Official Says US "Failing" On Covid

The US Centers for Disease Control said in a Twitter message Sunday that even asymptomatic children can spread Covid-19, adding, "Children 2 years or older should wear masks in public indoor settings, including schools."

With the United States recording its highest daily Covid case load in six months, a top public health official warned Sunday that the country is "failing."

"We should not really have ever got to the place we are," Francis Collins, director of the National Institutes of Health, said on ABC's "This Week."

"In that regard, yes, we are failing."

A surge in the highly transmissible Delta variant has brought a slew of bad news: total daily new cases have soared to 118,000, their highest since February; deaths are up 89 percent over the past two weeks, even while slightly declining around the world; and children's hospitals in US states like Florida are being overwhelmed as young people are increasingly affected.

Fears about the Delta variant have sparked a surge in vaccination rates. Yet millions, especially in conservative areas, remain skeptical about the vaccines.

"We would not be in the place we are right now with this Delta surge if we had been more effective in getting everybody" vaccinated, Collins said.

"Now we're paying a terrible price."

Vaccine approval seen soon


Another top health official, Anthony Fauci, meantime pointed to possible final approval of key vaccines from the federal Food and Drug Administration as early as this month -- something some skeptics have said they need to hear.

"I hope that it's within the month of August," Fauci told NBC's "Meet the Press."

The infectious disease specialist, who advises President Joe Biden on health matters, warned that failure to bring the Delta variant under control would increase the chances of a new variant emerging which "could be more problematic than Delta."

But children under 12 are not yet eligible for the vaccines, and Collins said the number of children hospitalized with Covid has hit an all-time high of 1,450.

He warned that if the millions of children soon returning to in-person schooling are not required to wear masks, "this virus will spread more widely.

"It will probably result in outbreaks in schools, and kids will have to go back to remote learning, which is the one thing we want to prevent."

Battle over mask-wearing


The US Centers for Disease Control said Sunday on Twitter that even asymptomatic children can spread Covid-19, adding, "Children 2 years or older should wear masks in public indoor settings, including schools."

US Education Secretary Miguel Cardona on Sunday seconded that advice. "Let our education leaders lead," he said on CBS's "Face the Nation."

Yet in Florida, one of the states hardest-hit by the latest surge, Governor Ron DeSantis sparked a political furor when he issued an order barring the state's school districts from mandating mask-wearing.

But with hospitals in the state struggling under a fast-growing patient load, a handful of school districts said they would defy the order.

"Our children's hospitals are completely overwhelmed," Aileen Marty, an infectious disease expert at Florida International University, told CNN. "Our pediatricians, the nurses, the staff, are exhausted, and the children are suffering. And it is absolutely devastating."

Collins, for his part, expressed exasperation that the debates over vaccine and mask-wearing had become politicized.

"We don't really need to be polarized about a virus that's killing people. We ought to be doing everything we can to save lives. And that means get the vaccine. And that means wear the mask when you're indoors in a crowded space."

He added: "This is not a political statement or an invasion of your liberties. This is a life-saving medical device."

AI Disclaimer: An advanced artificial intelligence (AI) system generated the content of this page on its own. This innovative technology conducts extensive research from a variety of reliable sources, performs rigorous fact-checking and verification, cleans up and balances biased or manipulated content, and presents a minimal factual summary that is just enough yet essential for you to function as an informed and educated citizen. Please keep in mind, however, that this system is an evolving technology, and as a result, the article may contain accidental inaccuracies or errors. We urge you to help us improve our site by reporting any inaccuracies you find using the "Contact Us" link at the bottom of this page. Your helpful feedback helps us improve our system and deliver more precise content. When you find an article of interest here, please look for the full and extensive coverage of this topic in traditional news sources, as they are written by professional journalists that we try to support, not replace. We appreciate your understanding and assistance.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán stated that Hungary will not adopt the euro because the European Union is falling apart.
Mayor in western Germany in intensive care after stabbing
Australian government pays Deloitte nearly half a million dollars for a report built on fabricated quotes, fake citations, and AI-generated nonsense.
BYD’s UK Sales Soar Nearly Nine-Fold, Making Britain Its Biggest Market Outside China
Latvia to Bar Tourist and Occasional Buses to Russia and Belarus Until 2026
Wave of Complaints Against Apple Over iPhone 17 Pro’s Scratch Sensitivity
Munich Airport Reopens After Second Drone Shutdown
Pro Europe and Anti-War Babiš Poised to Return to Power After Czech Parliamentary Vote
Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs Sentenced to Fifty Months in Prison Following Prostitution Conviction
Altman Says GPT-5 Already Outpaces Him, Warns AI Could Automate 40% of Work
Russian Research Vessel 'Yantar' Tracked Mapping Europe’s Subsea Cables, Raising Security Alarms
Global Cruise Industry Posts Dramatic Comeback with 34.6 Million Passengers in 2024
U.S. Demands Brussels Scrutinize Digital Rules to Prevent Bias Against American Tech
Private Equity’s Fundraising Surge Triggers Concern of European Market Shake-Out
Tokyo’s Jimbōchō Named World’s Coolest Neighbourhood for 2025
European Officials Fear Trump May Shift Blame for Ukraine War onto EU
The Personality Rights Challenge in India’s AI Era
Italy Considers Freezing Retirement Age at 67 to Avert Scheduled Hike
Italian City to Impose Tax on Visiting Dogs Starting in 2026
Study Finds No Safe Level of Alcohol for Dementia Risk
Trump Says Ukraine Can Fully Restore Borders with NATO Backing
Europe Signals Stronger Support for Taiwan at Major Taipei Defence Show
Germany Weighs Excluding France from Key European Fighter Jet Programme
Cyberattack Disrupts Check-in and Boarding Systems at Major European Airports
Björn Borg Breaks Silence: Memoir Reveals Addiction, Shame and Cancer Battle
When Extremism Hijacks Idealism: How the Baader-Meinhof Gang Emerged and Fell
JWST Data Brings TRAPPIST-1e Closer to Earth-Like Habitability
Trump Orders $100,000 Fee on H-1B Visas and Launches ‘Gold Card’ Immigration Pathway
France’s Looming Budget Crisis and Political Fracture Raise Fears of Becoming Europe’s “Sick Man”
Three Russian MiG-31 Jets Breach Estonian Airspace in ‘Unprecedentedly Brazen’ NATO Incident
European manufacturers against ban on polluting cars: "The industry may collapse"
Turkish car manufacturer Togg Enters German Market with 5-Star Electric Sedan and SUV to Challenge European EV Brands
Christian Brueckner Released from German Prison after Serving Unrelated Sentence
World’s Longest Direct Flight China Eastern to Launch 29-Hour Shanghai–Buenos Aires Direct Flight via Auckland in December
New OpenAI Study Finds Majority of ChatGPT Use Is Personal, Not Professional
The conservative right spreads westward: a huge achievement for 'Alternative for Germany' in local elections
Pope Leo Warns of Societal Crisis Over Mega-CEO Pay, Citing Tesla’s Proposed Trillion-Dollar Package
Poland Green-Lights NATO Deployment in Response to Major Russian Drone Incursion
U.S. and China Agree on Framework to Shift TikTok to American Ownership
Le Pen Tightens the Pressure on Macron as France Edges Toward Political Breakdown
Czech Republic signs €1.34 billion contract for Leopard 2A8 main battle tanks with delivery from 2028
Penske Media Sues Google Over “AI Overviews,” Claiming It Uses Journalism Without Consent and Destroys Traffic
Indian Student Engineers Propose “Project REBIRTH” to Protect Aircraft from Crashes Using AI, Airbags and Smart Materials
One in Three Europeans Now Uses TikTok, According to the Chinese Tech Giant
Could AI Nursing Robots Help Healthcare Staffing Shortages?
NATO Deploys ‘Eastern Sentry’ After Russian Drones Violate Polish Airspace
The New Life of Novak Djokovic
German police raid AfD lawmaker’s offices in inquiry over Chinese payments
Volkswagen launches aggressive strategy to fend off Chinese challenge in Europe’s EV market
France Erupts in Mass ‘Block Everything’ Protests on New PM’s First Day
×