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TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — A prominent molecular biologist at Rutgers University claims that a member of the World Health Organization (WHO) team investigating the origins of COVID-19 in Wuhan has a conflict of interest, due to his ties with the Wuhan lab at the center of the inquest.
British zoologist and the president of EcoHealth Alliance Peter Daszak is the only individual to be part of both the WHO and The Lancet teams investigating the origins of the Wuhan coronavirus pandemic. However, he has long-term professional and financial ties with the Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV), which represents a conflict of interest.
Richard H. Ebright is the Board of Governors Professor of Chemistry and Chemical Biology at Rutgers University, and Laboratory Director at the Waksman Institute of Microbiology. He told Taiwan News that Daszak is the contractor who funded the WIV's research on bat SARS-related coronaviruses, with subcontracts of $200 million in USAID funding and $7 million in NIH funding.
Ebright said that Daszak is a collaborator on the WIV research for bat SARS-related coronaviruses. He lamented that the WHO named Daszak as a member of its review team, and The Lancet named Daszak as the head of its review team. Ebright said this makes "it clear that WHO and Lancet reviews cannot be considered credible investigations."
In addition to the funding EcoHealth Alliance receives from USAID, NIH, and other agencies, which it funnels into the WIV, Ebright stated the firm received US$30 million from the US Department of Defense.
When asked whether Daszak had been involved in the controversial gain of function experiments on bat coronaviruses at the WIV, Ebright said: "Daszak has been a contractor, a collaborator, and a co-author on work at the WIV on construction and analysis of novel chimeric coronaviruses."
A report by Independent Science News and a search of U.S. government databases revealed that EcoHealth Alliance received US$39 million in funding from the Pentagon from 2013 to 2020. Adding another US$64.7 million from USAID, the report found that Daszak's "non-profit organization" has raked in over US$103 million from the U.S. government.
Since 2014, Daszak's organization has funneled some of this U.S. government funding into the WIV to carry out research on bat coronaviruses. In the first phase of research, which took place from 2014 to 2019, Daszak coordinated with Shi Zhengli (็ณๆญฃ้บ) — also known as "Bat Woman" — at the WIV to investigate and catalog bat coronaviruses across China. EcoHealth Alliance received US$3.7 million in funding from the NIH for this research, and 10 percent was channeled to the WIV, reported NPR.
The second phase, which started in 2019, involved gain-of-function (GoF) research on coronaviruses and chimeras in humanized mice from the lab of Ralph S. Baric of the University of North Carolina. In a video interview originally recorded on Dec. 9, 2019, Daszak mentioned the testing of modified coronaviruses on human cells and humanized mice in the WIV, just weeks before the first cases of COVID-19 were announced in the city of Wuhan, China.
Daszak has dismissed the possibility of a lab leak, insisting since the start of the pandemic it's a "conspiracy theory" — without providing evidence for his claim. A report by U.S. Right to Knowalleges that emails released through freedom of information requests reveal that Daszak persuaded 26 prominent scientists to sign a statement published in The Lancet on Feb. 19 2020, claiming that any suggestions that COVID-19 was not of natural origin are "conspiracy theories."
Four signatories of The Lancet statement are employed by EcoHealth Alliance. Six scientists who signed the statement, including Daszak, now comprise half of The Lancet's panel investigating the origins of the virus.
Furthermore, Daszak in 2015 co-authored an article in the journal Nature titled, "Spillover and pandemic properties of zoonotic viruses with high host plasticity," in which he stated that zoonotic virus spillover from wildlife was "most frequent" in a number of settings and occupations, including "laboratory workers." He also warned that laboratories are one of the most dangerous settings for major spillover events.
"Among all high risk interfaces and hosts, only viruses transmitted to humans by contact with wild animals in the wildlife trade and in laboratories ... were more likely to have broader geographic reach," Daszak said.
Daszak's colleague, Shi Zhengli, in 2010 published a paper describing a scenario in which infected rodents led to a deadly virus being leakedfrom a Chinese lab. The paper, titled, "Hantavirus outbreak associated with laboratory rats in Yunnan, China," detailed an outbreak of hantavirus hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome (HFRS) at a college in Kunming as the result of a lab leak in 2003.
Since the start of the pandemic, both Daszak and Shi have denied that a lab leak occurred at the WIV. However, over a year since the outbreak, Shi has yet to provide independent investigators with access to the WIV's database and laboratory records.
Daszak has yet to respond to a request to comment on allegations that he has a conflict of interest in the WHO and The Lancet investigations. The WIV has also yet to reply to questions about their experiments in 2019.
Natural News) Some of the most domineering public health figures during the covid-19 scandal are NAMED in a historic indictment sent to the International Criminal Court (ICC). These government, pharmaceutical and public health officials have ruled un-democratically over the people and imposed harmful policies of subjugation under the guise of “mitigating covid-19.”
Their unaccountable policies of subjugation have deprived people of basic human rights and equal opportunity. The defendants have used medical fraud, perpetrated by fraudulently calibrated PCR tests, to propagate a narrative that only emboldens their own power and control over people’s lives. Their disregard for efficacious treatments, immune system solutions and their censorship of natural immunity has ravaged the principle of informed consent, contributed to iatrogenic error and caused undo separation, isolation, medical malpractice and wrongful death. Their policies have forced provably dangerous genetic experiments onto people using discrimination, segregation and threats to one’s livelihood. These defendants have subverted the rule of law for nearly two years, ruining countless lives.
These beleaguered officials include Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the director-general of the World Health Organization (WHO); June Raine, executive director of the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA); Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the U.S. National Institutes of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID); Dr. Radiv Shah, president of the Rockefeller Foundation; Dr. Peter Daszak, president of EcoHealth Alliance and Bill and Melinda Gates, who have openly funded and promoted much of these well-documented crimes against humanity.
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The defendants also include notable UK officials, including Boris Johnson, UK Prime Minister; Christopher Whitty, UK Chief Medical Adviser; Matthew Hancock, former UK Secretary of State for Health and Social Care; and Klaus Schwab, President of the World Economic Forum. The criminal complaint also lists the CEOs of four major pharmaceutical companies, who continue to commit acts of genocide through experimental gene interference “vaccines” that damage the cardiovascular system, innate immune responses and the reproductive health of women, among thousands of medical concerns documented by pharmacovigilance systems around the world. These defendants include Albert Bourla, CEO of Pfizer; Stephane Bancel, CEO of AstraZeneca; Pascal Soriot, CEO of Moderna and Alex Gorsky, CEO of Johnson and Johnson.
The criminal complaint is brought forth by former Pfizer vice president Dr. Michael Yeadon and human rights lawyer Hannah Rose. They are joined by Astrophysicist Piers Corbyn, nurse Louise Shotbolt, retired law enforcement officer John O’Loony and human rights activist Johnny McStay. The indictment accuses the defendants “of numerous violations of the Nuremberg Code,” “crimes of aggression” and “war crimes.” Because the English court system refuses to take up this historic matter, the plaintiffs are asking the ICC with “utmost urgency” to “stop the deployment of COVID vaccines” and “illegal vaccination passports” and “all other types of illegal warfare” that is being “waged against the people of the United Kingdom” and against people around the world.
Public health officials have forced people to use PCR tests that are “completely unreliable” as a diagnostic standard, misleading people and obfuscating data. These tests have been fraudulently calibrated and used to artificially inflate covid-19 case counts and deaths to perpetuate further medical tyranny and deprivation of individual rights.
Effective treatments such as hydroxychloroquine and ivermectin have been suppressed, leading to immune failure and severe disease. This, in turn, led to reliance on drugs that cause renal failure and subsequent reliance on ventilators, which cause oxidative damage and cytokine storm, damaging lungs and putting patients at a greater risk of life-threatening pneumonia and death.
Moreover, the UK government has failed to investigate the massive wave of vaccine injury and death following covid-19 vaccination. There are at least 395,049 reported adverse reactions to COVID “vaccines” in the U.K. alone. This experimental gene interference technology was designed from criminal gain-of-function research that weaponized coronavirus spike proteins so that genetic experiments could be deployed through “vaccination” using the engineered spike protein. This experiment has led to a proven increase in eye disorders, heart inflammation, cardiac arrest and spontaneous abortion. A recent study published in the New England Medical Journal showed 8 in 10 women had a miscarriage after taking a Covid ‘vaccine’ before the third trimester.
Furthermore, the defendants’ lock down policies have not provably altered the course of infection in the public and have caused “wealth and business destruction, along with a sharp increase in ChildLine calls from children who were made more vulnerable due to destructive public health policies. The defendant’s acceptance of vaccine passports has introduced a medical apartheid that violates the medical privacy and body autonomy of individuals through discrimination, segregation and other acts of malice. Their policies have imposed psychological harm to children and severely deprived the physical liberty of the people, in “violation of fundamental rules of international law.” These violations include travel and assembly bans and forced quarantine and self-isolation without due process of law.
The first principle of the Nuremberg Code is a willingness and informed consent by the person to receive treatment and participate in an experiment. The person is supposed to activate freedom of choice without the intervention, either through force, deceit, fraud, threat, solicitation or any other type of binding or coercion. This guiding principle of medical ethics and the remaining tenants of the Nuremberg Code have all been violated during the covid-19 scandal. After violating these principles for nearly two years with no remorse, the perpetrators must now be brought to their knees.
Read the full indictment online.
Sources include:
RioTimesOnline.com
NaturalNews.com
PubMed.gov
NEJM.org
Docdroid.com [PDF]
The book, “The Real Anthony Fauci: Bill Gates, Big Pharma, and the Global War on Democracy and Public Health,” confronts the depiction of Fauci as a “hero” by the “pharma-funded mainstream media,” which Kennedy argues he is “anything but,” according to the publisher’s description.
“As director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), Dr. Anthony Fauci dispenses $6.1 billion in annual taxpayer-provided funding for scientific research, allowing him to dictate the subject, content, and outcome of scientific health research across the globe,” it reads.
“The Real Anthony Fauci details how Fauci, Gates, and their cohorts use their control of media outlets, scientific journals, key government and quasi-governmental agencies, global intelligence agencies, and influential scientists and physicians to flood the public with fearful propaganda about COVID-19 virulence and pathogenesis, and to muzzle debate and ruthlessly censor dissent,” the book description concludes.
Now, to the O.G. vaccine skeptics out there who have been following Kennedy Jr. since long before the pandemic, none of these allegations are surprising.
What is surprising, however, is that this is the description of a book that is ranked number one on Amazon and not a fringe blog that has established itself with sensationalistic headlines enjoyed by small factions of crunchy social media users.
https://www.westernjournal.com/merry-christmas-fauci-amazons-1-nonfiction-book-brutal-expose-dangerous-doctor-america/ out Kennedy Jr. and the claims he has been making about crooked global health cabals or the dangers of widespread vaccination, you’ve got to marvel that skepticism of Fauci’s earnestness as a public health leader has gotten so pronounced that his book is this popular.
Narrative broken much?
The truth is, Kennedy Jr. is hardly the first high-profile critic of Dr. Fauci.
While the media continues to prop him up as the prophet of COVID, he’s been confronted on his dubious career ties and alleged lies to Congress about his past by Republican Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky on more than one occasion, and his emails from the early days of the pandemic released earlier this year certainly didn’t assuage concerns that he might be shadier than he is saintly.
The truth is, this book isn’t exactly coming out of left field.
It digs into claims that have been made about Dr. Fauci for some time and, whether true or not, enough of a picture of his untrustworthiness has been painted over the last nearly two years that conspiratorial allegations have managed to cut through all the glowing media coverage of his career and activities during the pandemic to propel this book to success.
And truth be told, this is a good thing.
What makes Dr. Anthony Fauci the most dangerous doctor in America is not necessarily his nefarious past (although this most certainly should be examined thoroughly and honestly), but that he is treated like such an infallible authority by the media — and apparently seems to believe he is infallible himself.
It wasn’t that long ago that he indignantly declared that if the skeptical plebs question him, they’re really just attacking science, because, apparently, he is the science.
This is scary stuff.
What Fauci spouts is not science — it’s indoctrination, since science can always be questioned and tested.
The role he has played in this pandemic has been that of a modern-day oracle, not a scientist who is subject to scrutiny.
For this reason, he absolutely must be questioned and criticized. And the fact that a book that casts a very harsh light on the authority we’re not supposed to question strongly signals that the American people are no longer buying his lies.
I don’t know about you, but I think that bodes pretty well for the future of independent scientific thought in America. Or, at the very least, it doesn’t bode very well for Dr. Anthony Fauci.
๐๐๐This Is What Our Taxpayer Money Buys—Nothing But Evil Genocidal Manmade Toxic Body Altering And Body Dysfunction Unto Death-
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Except—
MR. ZIENTS: Good morning. And thanks for joining us.
Today, Dr. Walensky will give an overview of the state of the pandemic and on new practices that will help keep schools open, and Dr. Fauci will provide an update on the latest science and the importance of boosters.
But before we start, I want to talk about how we should think about this moment.
As we’ve explained in prior briefings, the Omicron variant is more transmissible and our medical experts anticipate it will lead to a rise in cases.
But unlike last winter, we now have the power to protect ourselves.
Our vaccines work against Omicron, especially for people who get booster shots when they are eligible. If you are vaccinated, you could test positive. But if you do get COVID, your case will likely be asymptomatic or mild.
We are intent on not letting Omicron disrupt work and school for the vaccinated. You’ve done the right thing, and we will get through this.
For the unvaccinated, you’re looking at a winter of severe illness and death for yourselves, your families, and the hospitals you may soon overwhelm.
So, our message to every American is clear: There is action you can take to protect yourself and your family. Wear a mask in public indoor settings. Get vaccinated, get your kids vaccinated, and get a booster shot when you’re eligible.
We are prepared to confront this new challenge. We have plenty of vaccines and booster shots available at convenient locations and for no cost. There is clear guidance on masking to help slow the spread. And we have emergency medical teams to respond to surges as necessary.
So, this is not a moment to panic because we know how to protect people and we have the tools to do it. But we need the American people to do their part to protect themselves, their children, and their communities.
The more people get vaccinated, the less severe this Omicron outbreak will be. One hundred sixty thousand unvaccinated people have already needlessly lost their lives just since June, and this number will continue to go up until the unvaccinated take action.
So, I’ll say it once more: Get vaccinated.
With that, I’ll turn it over to Dr. Walensky.
DR. WALENSKY: Thank you, Jeff. And good morning, everyone. I’d like to start by walking you through today’s data.
The current seven-day daily average of cases is at about 119,500 per day.
The seven-day average of hospital admissions is at about 7,800 per day, an increase of about 4 percent over the previous week.
And the seven-day average of daily deaths is at about 1,200 per day, which is an increase of over 8 percent from the prior week.
Now let me bring you up to date on what we know about Omicron. At least 39 states and over 75 countries have reported confirmed cases of the Omicron variant.
And although Delta continues to circulate widely in the United States, Omicron is increasing rapidly and we expect it to become the dominant strain in the United States, as it has in other countries, in the coming weeks.
We’ve seen cases of Omicron among those who are both vaccinated and boosted, and we believe these cases are milder or asymptomatic because of vaccine protection.
What we do know is we have the tools to protect ourselves against COVID-19.
We have vaccines, we have boosters, and we know multi-layer prevention strategies — masks in public indoor settings, practicing physical distancing, frequent handwashing, improving ventilation, and testing to slow transmission — are vitally important, especially as we prepare for more Omicron and even if you are vaccinated and boosted.
This morning, I want to talk with you now about how we can use these tools to help keep our children in school.
Over the past few months, CDC has collaborated with school districts across the country to evaluate a new strategy known as “test to stay.”
Today, we’re releasing CDC science on “test to stay” that allows unvaccinated children to stay in school even if they have been exposed to the virus so that they don’t have to miss school while they’re quarantining at home.
In the test-to-stay protocol, there is increased testing of close contacts after a COVID-19 exposure, and that testing needs to be at least twice during the seven-day period after exposure. If exposed children meet a certain criteria and continue to test negative, they can stay in school instead of quarantining at home.
CDC is also releasing two MMWR reports with evidence supporting the use of “test to stay” and how well it worked in two communities: Lake County, Illinois, and Los Angeles County.
These studies demonstrate that “test to stay” works to keep unvaccinated children in school safely.
In order for “test to stay” to be implemented safely and correctly, some key prevention measures need to be included.
In both of these studies, masks were worn consistently and correctly, close contacts of a positive case were monitored for symptoms and stayed home if they became ill, and those who did not develop symptoms had regular testing.
“Test to stay” is an encouraging public health practice to help keep our children in school. And CDC is updating our materials to help schools and parents know how to best implement this promising and now proven practice, along with our multi-layer prevention strategies that will help keep our children in the classroom safely.
Importantly, vaccination is another critical piece in our multi-layer prevention strategies to protect our children from COVID-19.
I’d like to take another moment to encourage parents to get their children vaccinated.
Just yesterday, CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices met to discuss new safety data following six weeks of COVID-19 vaccinations in children between the ages of 5 to 11.
We now have experience vaccinating over 20 million children under the age of 17, and over 5 million of whom are under the age of 11.
Looking specifically at vaccine safety data from over 50,000 children 5- to 11-year-olds, we found no evidence of serious safety concerns.
The most common reported side effect including pa- — included pain at the injection site, fever, tiredness, and headaches/muscle aches, which we know are normal and are all signs of the body — that the body is building immunity to the virus.
This further adds to the strong evidence of the safety of these vaccines for children and should be an encouraging reason for those who are waiting for more data to now feel confident in making the decision to get your child vaccinated.
In addition to reviewing safety data yesterday, CDC’s advisory committee on vaccine experts met to evaluate recommendations surrounding the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine, evaluating the benefits of vaccination, the safety data and rare adverse events, and the COVID-19 vaccine supply.
Following their discussion, ACIP made a recommendation to preferentially use mRNA vaccines over the Johnson & Johnson vaccine.
And I endorsed their recommendation and agreed with the Advisory Committee’s emphasis, importantly, that given the current state of the pandemic both here and around the world, any vaccination is better than no vaccination. Individuals who are unable or unwilling to receive an mRNA vaccine will continue to have access to Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccines.
And, finally, as we head into the holiday season, when many will be gathering with their loved ones, I want to again encourage everyone to utilize the proven prevention strategies that keep everyone safe: get vaccinated and get boosted, mask in public indoor settings, physical distancing, handwashing, improve ventilation, and testing to slow transmission.
We know that these strategies work and will help to keep you and your loved ones safe and healthy this holiday season.
Thank you. I’ll now turn things over to Dr. Fauci.
DR. FAUCI: Thank you very much, Dr. Walensky. I’d like to spend the next couple of minutes talking about the importance of COVID-19 booster shots, both in the current Delta surge and in the evitable upcoming Omicron surge.
So, if I could have the next slide.
Let’s take a look at some of the data that fortifies what I just said. This is a recently published study in the New England Journal looking at individuals 50 years of age or older who received the booster about five months after a second dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech. There was a 90 percent lower mortality due to COVID-19 than participants who did not receive a boost.
Now, albeit, the mortality is low in people who are vaccinated anyway. However, it goes down to practically negligible values — if you look at the blue line, compared to the pink line.
Next slide.
Now let’s take a look at Omicron-specific situations. In this study, one looked at three separate vaccines: the mRNA of Moderna, the Pfizer, and then the Ad26 J&J followed by an mRNA boost. Again, if you look at the “times two,” which means a standard vaccination, and then take a look at the pseudovirus neutralization following the boost, the increment of that is really rather profound: 19 times for the one on the left, 27 times for the one in the middle, and 4 times for the one on the right.
Next slide.
Now, also, if you look at the neutralization of multiple different variants by pseudovirus analysis and take a look again at two separate studies — one from the Vaccine Research Center at NIH and one from Duke University. Note, on the left panels, four weeks following the second dose. Look specifically at the pink bar. There you see a rather low level of neutralization with Omicron.
However, if you look at two weeks post the third, or booster dose, note how much it goes up. For example, if you look at the Omicron comparing in the Duke line: You see it is about 2002, whereas after a second dose it’s only 62 — a dramatic increase.
Next slide.
Another example: if you look at the sensitivity of variants to neutralization by people who are vaccinated with the Pfizer vaccine. If you look again, five months after the second dose, and look under the Omicron — the red circles — nominal. In other words, virtually no degree of neutralization protection. Again, one month after the third dose, it goes well within the protective range.
Next slide.
If you look at now convalescent serum, and take a look at each of the panels. On the left, you have a convalescent serum six months after infection. Again, the level of protection that would be projected from the antibody levels is very low — as you see with Omicron, pretty low level with these circles that are red. Twelve months later, it even gets worse.
But take a look at what happens if you take a person who’s convalescent but you boost that person now with a dose of Pfizer and wait one month. The red circles go way up into the protective range.
Next slide.
And then if you look at actual clinical issues — take a look in a UK study about individuals who had a — who had symptomatic infection. Look at Delta in the blue boxes. As you go — the time since the vaccine and look at the weeks, which are showed on the bottom line, you get a diminution against Delta but a very profound diminution — below 40 percent effectiveness with Delta. When you boost, not only do you bring it up to Delta — in the blue — but also to Omicron.
What does all of this tell us?
Last slide.
We are in the — in a situation where we are now facing a very important Delta surge and we are looking over our shoulder at an oncoming Omicron surge. Clearly, unvaccinated individuals, as Jeff said in the beginning, are really at a high risk of serious involvement, including hospitalization. The fully vaccinated are doing much better off. But as I’ve shown you in the previous five or six slides, the optimum protection is fully vaccinated plus a boost.
So the bottom line of what we’ve been telling you all along: It is critical to get vaccinated. If you are vaccinated, it is critical for optimal protection to get boosted.
Back to you, Jeff.
MR. ZIENTS: Well, thank you, Doctors.
With that, let’s open it up for some questions. Over to you, Kevin.
MODERATOR: Thanks, Jeff. Let’s go back to Serena Marshall from NowThis.
Q Thank you. I appreciate you doing this and coming back to me right away. So, I just wanted to — for some clarity: Are we seeing Delta at — would seem to be more infectious, but is there evidence with the breakthrough infections that they’re more severe in any way?
Is there any evidence to — that you could talk about with long COVID? We’ve seen some new data that roughly 30 to 40 percent of anyone who tests positive have resulted in long COVID as well. And there’s a lot of unknowns when it comes to how that’s going to play out.
MR. ZIENTS: Why don’t we start with you, Dr. Fauci.
DR. FAUCI: Well, I think you meant to say “Omicron.” Yes, Omicron is more transmissible. Everything we know about it, from what we’re seeing not only in South Africa, but its distribution throughout the world and as well as in our own country — we see what’s going on in New York City, when we’re getting beyond double digits of Omicron being the primary variant there in that percentage.
With regard to the seriousness of infection: Really, it’s still up in the air right now because there are a lot of confounding issues as to whether or not it is less severe. Certainly, looking at what we see, it does not look like it is more severe, but we have to hold with — withhold judgment about the severity being less.
With regard to long COVID: We don’t have enough information on Omicron with regard to long COVID. I would not expect it’s going to be any different than we have with Delta, but we’ll have to wait to see until we get more experience.
MR. ZIENTS: Next question, please.
Moderator: Let’s go to Cheyenne Haslett at ABC News.
Q Thanks, guys. My first question, for Dr. Fauci, you showed data showing how little protection people have after two doses a few months after getting it. So, should Americans who are not eligible for their booster yet — not six months past their last shot — be concerned that they’re not well protected against Omicron and get boosted sooner than six months?
And then, my second question on our booster rate still being very low — only 30 percent of the fully vaccinated — how concerning is that as we head into this larger surge?
DR. FAUCI: Well, let me answer the second one first, and that is the concern. I mean, obviously that’s the reason why I have spent essentially my entire brief presentation on urging people to get boosted: for the simple reason that we do get optimal protection from a boost.
You mentioned the lowering of protection. And if you look at some of the slides I showed — a, quote, “fully vaccinated” person, after a period of time, clearly has a diminution.
You still get protection that’s reasonably good against hospitalization. We want to make that better with the booster. Whether or not we’re going to change what the time interval between your last vaccination and your boost, we always have these on the table for discussion, but, right now, there has not been a decision on that.
MR. ZIENTS: The right way to think about the percent boosted is those eligible, and we’ve now boosted about 60 million Americans. That’s about 40 percent — 4-0 percent — of the eligible Americans.
Importantly, of those over 65, we’re now more than 60 percent, and that’s important because they are the most vulnerable.
We are boosting about a million people a day. So, booster shots are running at a million per day. And that is accelerated from where we were, as Dr. Fauci said, stressing the importance of getting the boost when people are eligible.
And the President’s Winter Plan really builds momentum here. Pharmacies are expanding appointments and hours and walk-in availability. We’re launching, as you know, family vaccination sites where parents can get boosted at the same time that their 5- to 11-year-old might get their first or second shot.
Medicare is reaching out to tens of millions of seniors, encouraging them to get boosters.
So, our message is very clear. Clinically, the docs have said: As soon as you’re eligible for a booster, get a booster. We have plenty of supply. We now have 90,000 sites — up another 10,000 from a few weeks ago — 90,000 sites that are convenient. And, as you know, getting a booster shot is free and everyone should get their booster shot as soon as possible.
Next question.
MODERATOR: Let’s go to Elizabeth Weise at USA Today.
Q Okay. This would be a question for Dr. Walensky. In light of Omicron’s higher transmissibility rate, potentially including people who are vaccinated, is the CDC reconsidering its recommendations that vaccinated people don’t need to self-isolate after an exposure to someone who has COVID?
DR. WALENSKY: Thank you for that question. We are actively following the science in that area with regard to how the viral burden is, both among vaccinated people and unvaccinated people, and the natural history of that viral burden with regard to isolation. And as that science emerges, we will update our evidence if need be.
MR. ZIENTS: Next question.
MODERATOR: Let’s go to Weijia Jiang at CBS News.
Q Thank you, Kevin. First, I have a question for Dr. Fauci. I wonder if Omicron is more transmissible just because the nature of the variant or because the booster and vaccine offer less protection against contracting Omicron compared to other variants — or a mix of both?
And for Dr. Walensky, given your new recommendation for students to test to stay, does that extend to adults who are exposed too — that a 14-day quarantine is no longer necessary as long as you test negative?
And when you say “continue to test negative,” how often should kids be getting tested to stay in school after exposure?
Thanks.
MR. ZIENTS: Dr. Fauci?
DR. FAUCI: Well, with regard to the first question, if you look at the configuration and the constellation of amino acid substitutions which result from mutations on the spike proteins, you would have predicted that this would be a more transmissible virus because of its ability to bind to the receptors on the cell.
So, you need only look at the virus itself to determine why it is more transmissible — what it actually is.
MR. ZIENTS: Dr. Walensky?
DR. WALENSKY: Yeah, with regard to test to stay, so this was a strategy that looked at unvaccinated children because vaccines were not available. Of course, in our school setting, we would encourage that all of our teachers who would be eligible would both be vaccinated as well as boosted.
With regard to the protocols, there are numerous jurisdictions that are looking at test-to-stay strategies. Some of them are — were testing every day; some of them, every other day; and some of them, twice a week.
So, we would say no less frequent than twice a week, in order to employ the test-to-stay protocols.
And these were limited to schools, to be clear, so we don’t yet have evidence about test-to-stay protocols in other settings.
MR. ZIENTS: Kevin, next question.
MODERATOR: Let’s go to a last question. Sabrina Siddiqui at The Wall Street Journal.
Q Thank you so much. Just two quick questions. France has imposed travel restrictions on the UK, and several other EU countries are also strengthening their border controls. Are you reconsidering travel from either the UK or the EU, given the COVID outbreaks there?
And then, secondly, I know we’re in a very different place with vaccines and boosters than we were last year, but how would you characterize your message to the American people going into the holidays? Is it safe for families and friends to get together before Christmas? And what is your message to people as we approach the holiday season?
MR. ZIENTS: So, why I don’t take the first question, and then I’ll hand it over to Dr. Walensky about the holiday season.
Let me start with the fact that the U.S. has strict protocols in place to help protect the American people and stop the spread of the disease, as it relates to international travel.
Foreign nationals — all foreign nationals coming into the U.S. from a part of the world where the travel is not restricted due to Omicron must be fully vaccinated and show proof of a negative test. And we’ve tightened that deadline for the timeframe for the negative test to be within one day of boarding a flight.
The CDC also strongly recommends that everyone get tested three to five days after they arrive in the U.S.
But as we’ve done throughout the pandemic, we will continue to follow the science and evaluate the best protocols for international travel, and we’ll keep people up to date and, most importantly, the American people safe.
Dr. Walensky?
DR. WALENSKY: Yeah. As you know, Sabrina, I think we’re in a very different place this year than we were last year, and we really do want people to be able to gather and gather safely. We have the tools now to do it. And what we’re really saying is: Please, rely on those tools.
Get vaccinated. If you’re eligible for a boost, get boosted.
And importantly, a week before the holidays, indoor mask in these areas that have — 90 percent of our counties have substantial or high transmission. Use the next week to make sure you’re practicing those safe prevention/mitigation strategies so that when you come together for the holidays that people have been not exposed to the virus because, in fact, they’ve been vaccinated, boosted, and masked.
And for that extra reassurance as we have more disease in this country right now, do a test and make sure that you’re negative before you mix and gather in different households.
MR. ZIENTS: Okay. Well, thank you. We look forward to speaking next week. But I hope everybody has a safe and relaxing weekend.
Thank you.
