Introduction
Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation’s top infectious disease expert, recently issued a warning about the Delta and Omicron variants of the coronavirus. These variants, which are believed to be more contagious than the original strain, have been identified in several countries around the world. In response, Dr. Fauci has urged Americans to take extra precautions to protect themselves and their communities from the spread of these variants. In this article, we’ll discuss the warning issued by Dr. Fauci and provide some tips on how to eat healthy and stay safe during the pandemic.
Dr. Fauci Issues Warning About Delta, Omicron COVID Variants
Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation’s top infectious disease expert, has issued a warning about the Delta and Omicron variants of the coronavirus. He said that the variants are more contagious and could lead to a surge in cases if people don’t take the necessary precautions.
The Delta variant, first identified in India, is now the most common variant in the United States. It is estimated to be up to 50% more contagious than the original strain of the virus. The Omicron variant, first identified in Brazil, is estimated to be up to 70% more contagious.
Dr. Fauci urged people to continue to wear masks, practice social distancing, and get vaccinated when they are eligible. He also warned that the variants could lead to a surge in cases if people don’t take the necessary precautions.
He said, “We must remain vigilant and continue to do all the things that we know work to prevent the spread of the virus. We must continue to wear masks, practice social distancing, and get vaccinated when we are eligible. We must also be aware of the potential for the variants to cause a surge in cases if we don’t take the necessary precautions.”
Dr. Fauci’s warning is a reminder that the fight against the coronavirus is far from over. It is important for people to continue to take the necessary precautions to protect themselves and others from the virus.
Coronavirus cases in America are raging again, as Delta and a new variant, Omicron, stalk humanity—and the data “suggests very strongly that Omicron has a transmission advantage,” says Dr. Anthony Fauci, the chief medical advisor to the President and the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. He issued urgent words of warning in a new interview with McClatchy. Read on for five pieces of essential advice—and to ensure your health and the health of others, don’t miss these Sure Signs You’ve Already Had COVID.
“People keep talking about a winter wave with Omicron — we’re still getting over 100,000 cases a day,” he said, referring to Delta. “We have around 50,000 people in the hospital. We have close to 1,400 deaths per day. I think we really better focus on what our real problem is, and our real problem is Delta right now.”
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“It’s really unfortunate and a sad commentary on our country that we have a historic outbreak that has already killed over 780,000 Americans, and at least 5 million and maybe twice that amount globally, and for reasons that are inexplicable — but may be explainable by political ideology — that we have people who are refusing to get vaccinated,” he said. “We have 60 million people in this country who refuse to get vaccinated. I mean, that is really very disturbing.”
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“Indications from South Africa suggest that it is at least not more severe, and likely is going to be less severe — and I say likely with a big caveat that we still have a lot more to learn,” he said. “When you look at the ratio between cases and hospitalizations, the ratio of hospitalizations to cases is much smaller than what it was previously. The duration of hospital stay is much less, indicating a strong suggestion that it’s less severe.”
But: “If it really is much more transmissible, just the quantity alone of people getting infected could outbalance the positive nature of it being less severe,” he added. “If you have something that has a small level infection and a high degree of severity, that might be equivalent to something that has a wide degree of infection and a small degree of severity.”
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You’re urged to get your booster six months after your last dose (for Pfizer or Moderna) or two months after your J&J. Why? “We should remember that the vaccines that we’ve all received were against the original ancestral Wuhan strain, yet they protect very well against Alpha, Beta and Delta, when you get the level of response high enough.” said Dr. Fauci on CNN. “And that’s what we’re seeing now with Omicron. So one can project that if you get a high enough level of protection induced by the vaccines, they will hold strong. However, having said that, we are still together with the pharmaceutical companies going ahead to make a variant specific boost just in case. It turns out that the boost with the current vaccine doesn’t give that kind of durable response. But from the preliminary data that you just mentioned, we have every reason to believe that the booster with the standard vaccine should hold us well.”
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Follow the public health fundamentals and help end this pandemic, no matter where you live—get vaccinated ASAP; if you live in an area with low vaccination rates, wear an N95 face mask, don’t travel, social distance, avoid large crowds, don’t go indoors with people you’re not sheltering with (especially in bars), practice good hand hygiene, and to protect your life and the lives of others, don’t visit any of these 35 Places You’re Most Likely to Catch COVID.