Eat This, Not That!
As national immunity against COVID-19 continues to build with millions of Americans lining up for vaccination daily, there is one trend that is "unsettling" for Dr. Rochelle Walensky, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). During the White House COVID-19 Response Team Briefing on Friday, she revealed that certain parts of the country are in danger of an upcoming COVID surge because of one, avoidable reason. Read on to hear the good news, and the bad—and to ensure your health and the health of others, don't miss this urgent news: Here's How You Can Catch COVID Even If You're Vaccinated. 1 The Number of Infections Is Decreasing—That's the Good News! Dr. Walensky started off by going over the latest COVID-19 data. As of Thursday, the CDC reported nearly 63,000 cases of COVID-19, with the seven day average down to 62,500 per day. "This is a 10% drop in average cases from the prior week and a hopeful trend," she noted. However, the seven day average of hospital admissions increased by 1.6 percent to 55,600, while the seven day average of daily deaths decreased slightly to about 691 per day. "Again, a number that's going in the right direction." 2 The U.S. Has Reached a "Tremendous" Milestone With Vaccinations—Get Yours if You Have Not! She also took a moment to celebrate "one of the tremendous milestones" of the pandemic thus far—that 66 percent of the US population over 65 is now fully vaccinated. "This is over 36 million Americans who are protected from COVID-19. And it's so important that we're protecting those over age 65. They have borne the brunt of the pandemic and without a vaccine are at high risk for severe disease, hospitalization and death," she pointed out. "We are well on our way to have one of our most vulnerable populations, fully protected against this deadly virus. And that is a reason to celebrate." 3 However, There Are "Unsettling Gaps" in Vaccination Coverage Across the Nation, Worrying Walensky However, she did note that there is one thing that concerns her. "We see on this map that vaccine coverage is not uniform across the country," she revealed. "There are some unsettling gaps in our coverage. Some areas are doing very well with greater than 65% coverage for those over the age of 65," she said, noting that "many areas have far less coverage, less than 47%." Virus expert Michael Osterholm yesterday mentioned "Mississippi, 29% have had at least one dose in that state, 30% in Alabama, 31% of Louisiana, 32% in Tennessee…. only 19% in Alabama"—"if we don't change the level of vaccination beyond where it's at right now in those states," it's anybody's guess, he said. 4 This Is Where Will the Virus Strike Next "Because this virus is an opportunist, we anticipate that the areas of lightest vaccine coverage now might be where the virus strikes next. And with modest protection of our oldest population, many more deaths could ensue. So while we have many reasons to celebrate, we also have the potential, indeed the need, to do more to protect people," said Walensky.RELATED: Most COVID Patients Did This Before Getting Sick 5 Protect Yourself and Others By Getting Vaccinated "Vaccination is about protecting ourselves from COVID-19. It's also about protecting those in your community, our family, our friends, and our neighbors. Now that everyone is eligible to receive a vaccine, please help turn your county toward more protection and a darker shade of blue. The healthier our families are the healthier we will be as a nation," Dr. Walensky continued. So help end this pandemic, no matter where you live—wear a face mask that fits snugly and is double layered, 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, get vaccinated when it becomes available to you, 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.