Dr. Rochelle Walensky, Director, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: “These numbers and what we are seeing across the country reveal two truths about the current state of the pandemic. On the one hand, we have seen the successes of our vaccination program over the last eight months with cases, hospitalizations and deaths far lower than the peaks we saw in January. And yet, on the other hand, we are starting to see some new and concerning trends. Simply put, in areas of lower vaccination coverage, cases and hospitalizations are up. The Delta variant is spreading rapidly throughout the country. This week, the Delta variant is estimated to be the most prevalent variant in the United States, representing over 50 percent of sequenced samples across the country, up from 26 percent from the week ending June 19. And in some parts of the country, the percentage is even higher. For example, in parts of the Midwest and upper mountain states, CDC’s early sequence data suggest the Delta variant accounts for approximately 80 percent of cases. Although we expected the Delta variant to become the dominant strain in the United States, this rapid rise is troubling. We know that the Delta variant has increased transmissibility and it is currently surging in pockets of the country with low vaccination rates. We also know that our authorized vaccines prevent severe disease, hospitalization and death from the Delta variant. And results, these results have been observed not just here in the United States, but in other countries as well. Of course, widespread vaccination is what will truly turn the corner on this pandemic. Please know if you are not vaccinated, you remain susceptible, especially from the transmissible Delta variant, and are particularly at risk for severe illness and death.”
Dr. Anthony Fauci, Director, National Institutes of Allergy and Infectious Diseases: “If you are an elderly person or if you have a person with an underlying disease, you might want to go the extra mile of protection of wearing a mask if you were indoors in an environment with a high degree of infection in the community and a low level of vaccination. That is not a mask recommendation. That’s just for consideration of each individual has their own level of the risk that they would like to take. And there are many individuals who would feel because of age or because of an underlying condition, that they might want to wear a mask. Having said that, let me emphasize that if you are vaccinated, you have a very high degree of protection and therefore you do not need to wear a mask.”
Jeff Zients, White House COVID-19 Response Coordinator: “We’ve seen movement by going person by person, community by community in states where neighbors have contacted neighbors. This is important work that’s leading to more vaccinations, and it’s done by people who care about the health of their family, friends and neighbors. So, I would say for those individuals, organizations that are feeding misinformation and trying to mischaracterize this type of trusted messenger work, I believe you are doing a disservice to the country and to the doctors, the faith leaders, community leaders and others who are working to get people vaccinated, save lives and help end this pandemic.”
