As new strains of coronavirus appear in various parts of the world and cases within the U.S. continue to peak, officials are stressing the importance of getting vaccinated.
"Right now the science suggests that the vaccines are still effective against the strains that have been identified but we're in a race," U.S. Surgeon General Jerome Adams told Cheddar.
Adams said the existence of new virus strains is not uncommon, and COVID-19 has mutated nearly 30 times since it was first discovered. However, he noted that mutations do not necessarily mean the virus will become more deadly or contagious.
While the vaccines appear to be holding up against new variants, there is still pressure, according to Adams, to reach "community immunity" before those doses become ineffective. As a result, the Surgeon General said that more has to be done to increase the volume of vaccinations and to speed up the process.
"We need businesses to be advocates for vaccines and to help us spread information about how people can stay healthy, including by getting vaccinated, so we can open up schools, open up restaurants, get back to worship again, get back to doing the things that we were doing in 2019 before we ever heard of this thing called COVID-19," Adams said.
In a report released today by the Office of the Surgeon General, a lack of prevention investments has impacted the overall health of the country and when it comes to COVID-19, in particular, Adams said he thinks businesses can be a line of defense against the virus if they are willing to be more vocal about people maintaining their health.
He said he was aware of the hesitancy many Americans have when it comes to taking the vaccine, partly because of the speed in which it was developed but wants the public to understand that "there were no safety corners cut whatsoever." Adams expressed a fear that misinformation could cause many people to avoid the vaccine altogether.
Vaccine Timeline
Officials planned for 20 million Americans to get vaccinated by the end of 2020, but the straggling rollout only yielded about 2.8 million people who had received a dose by year's end, partly because some hospitals didn't receive enough doses, while others received a surplus. The surgeon general said that in addition to using pharmacies like CVS and Walgreens, the focus should be shifted to all possible avenues to quickly get as many people vaccinated as possible.
"We need to use churches and other sites where people are so that we can quickly get vaccinations into arms," he noted. "And we also need to address vaccine confidence because a vaccine does nothing if a person is unwilling to take it."
For Adams, it's an all-hands-on-deck approach to stomping out COVID-19 and as the Biden administration gears up to take over the White House, he said he hopes to work with the administration, particularly Surgeon General nominee Vivek Murthy, to continue the effort.
"Dr. Murthy and I have worked together for the past three and half years. It's a small group of surgeons general," Adams said.
"I want us to be successful, and I'm committed to helping the Biden administration and our country — because I am the nation's doctor — really recover from this pandemic. And that's why I put this report out today," he added.
2021 saw markets continue to be impacted by the onslaught of the coronavirus pandemic -most recently in the form of the Omicron variant- in addition to the global supply chain shortage, and increased inflation. But it wasn't all bad news, as crypto soared throughout the year, and meme stocks continued to have a moment. With the year coming to a close, investors are keeping an eye out to see if they should expect more of the same in the new year. Chris Vecchio, Senior Analyst, at DailyFX tells us what market trends to be on the watch for in 2022.
Matt Hayden, vice president of govtech solutions at Exiger and a former assistant secretary of cyber at Department of Homeland Security, joined Cheddar to discuss the surprise phone call initiated by Russian President Vladimir Putin to President Joe Biden, ahead of January security talks about the rising tensions over Ukraine. "We're hoping to hear that we're able to talk about the aggression and the leadup of the Ukrainian militarization," Hayden said. "But we're also looking to hear is how the Kremlin leveraged their talking points to try to test their negotiation stance with the United States leading into this January 10th meeting."
The No Surprises Act begins implementation on January 1, 2022. The legislation is meant to curb the practice of unexpected billing for care from providers the patient was unaware were out-of-network from their insurance. Patricia Kelmar, director of health care campaigns for U.S. PIRG joined Cheddar to describe the hundreds, sometimes thousands, of dollars charged to unsuspecting patients and how things will change under the new law. "If we are picking an in-network doctor and an in-network hospital, we should not see those added costs from anesthesiologists, radiologists, scrub-in surgeons," she said. "The other area it protects you is in air ambulances — not ground ambulances, unfortunately — but the helicopters or the airplanes you might need to transport you in an emergency situation."
President Joe Biden and Russian President Vladmir Putin are expected to have another conversation surrounding escalating tensions between Russia and Ukraine. Ariel Cohen, senior fellow at the Atlantic Council, joined Cheddar's Ken Buffa to discuss the ongoing tensions and why Putin's request for a conversation with Biden comes now. "This is very serious. This is the worst security crisis we had since the collapse of the Soviet Union," Cohen told Cheddar.
Stocks closed mixed on Wednesday, but two indexes - the Dow and the S&P 500 - ended the session with a new record. Akshata Bailkeri, Equity Analyst at Bruderman Asset Management, joins Cheddar News' Closing Bell, where she says there is a consensus for robust consumer spreading in 2022, especially as the Omicron variant is proving to be milder than other COVID-19 strains.
