US coronavirus: lowering Covid-19 cases is the best thing the US can do to improve the chances of vaccines continuing to work, says the expert

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“The best thing we can do to improve the chances of the vaccine continuing to function as we hope it will be is to reduce the cases as much as possible without these reductions occurring as a result of the vaccine-derived immunity.” , said Dr. Michael Mina, epidemiologist and immunologist at Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health, said during an event Tuesday.

The United States reported more than 59,500 new cases of Covid-19 on Tuesday – far from the six-figure case it reported just a month ago. But experts warn that these infections are still large and could see another rise if Americans lower their guard.

That’s why measures like masks and social distancing continue to play a key role, because if the virus continues to circulate at high levels, it will likely come in contact more often and try to infect people who have been vaccinated, Mina said. .

“The more opportunities we have for the virus to come in contact with someone who is immune, the more opportunities there are for the virus to find a way to surround that level of immunity and those antibodies,” Mina added.

Scientists have already identified several variants circulating in the US and are particularly concerned about strain B.1.1.7 – an extremely contagious variant first detected in the UK. A recent study found that cases of the variant are growing rapidly in the US and it is possible that significant Community transmission may already occur.

More than 1,270 cases of the variant have been reported in 41 states and Washington, DC, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. About a third of these cases are in Florida, CDC data show.

But the agency said it probably does not account for the total number of cases nationwide and has recently worked to step up its genome sequencing efforts to identify variants.

On Tuesday, Quest Diagnostics announced that it is also conducting sequencing tests to support the CDC’s efforts to track mutations, adding that the company has already doubled the amount of genomic sequencing it began last month.

Fauci changes the timeline of the vaccine for the American public

The US also faces vaccine challenges.

More than 39 million people have so far received at least the first dose of the Covid-19 vaccine, according to CDC data. About 15 million people – about 4.5% of the US population – have been completely vaccinated, the data show.

Dr. Anthony Fauci told CNN on Tuesday that it could now be from mid to late May or early June before vaccines become available to the general population – changing the timing of previous estimates that placed the widespread availability of vaccines at end of April.

“This is based on (Johnson & Johnson vaccine) having considerably more doses than we now know they will have,” Fauci said. “So this timeline will probably be extended, maybe in the middle to the end of May and the beginning of June.”

CNN has learned that if it receives a green light from the Food and Drug Administration, the launch of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine will be slower than officials expected.

The administration expects millions of single-digit doses for the vaccine if it is authorized for emergency use. However, due to a miscommunication on the production schedule, government officials believed that the number would increase to 20 or 30 million doses by April. But now, it expects less than 20 million doses in April, a government official told CNN.

Separately, President Joe Biden promised on Tuesday that 600 million doses of Covid-19 vaccine would be available to the country by the end of July, “enough to vaccinate every American.”

The president’s promise follows his announcement earlier this month that the United States will have enough vaccines for 300 million Americans by the end of July, with the help of the government’s additional vaccine purchases from Pfizer and Moderna.
“What will happen is that it will continue to grow as we move forward. We will reach 400 million doses by the end of May and 600 million by the end of July,” Biden told a CNN City Hall event. .

Several vaccine challenges: inequity, time and scarce resources

Among the other difficulties the US is working to overcome are inequity in vaccine distribution, cold weather and lack of supply.

New York officials said Tuesday they are working to combat disparities in the Covid-19 vaccine, building on efforts that have focused on expanding to some of the region’s hardest-hit communities.

But recently released data show “the magnitude of the challenge before us,” said Dr. Torian Easterling, the commissioner’s first deputy and chief equity officer for the city’s health department.

“There is a much smaller proportion of vaccines going to black and brown New York. We see that these geographical disparities are also widening,” Easterling said, adding that the South Bronx, parts of Central Queens and Central Brooklyn, remain. behind in terms of vaccinations.

Cities and states are delaying the distribution of the Covid-19 vaccine due to winter storms
Meanwhile, severe winter storms that triggered frozen and dangerous weather have now slowed vaccinations across the country.

Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine said Tuesday that supplies of vaccines to state suppliers directly from Pfizer and Moderna could be delayed by a day or two due to the weather. In Georgia, health officials said they also expect delays in vaccine arrivals, adding that many providers and health departments have been forced to reschedule vaccine schedules.

For some parts of the country, supply problems are slowing down.

Michigan’s Beaumont Health System canceled more than 1,880 side-dose meetings scheduled for Thursday after learning of an “unexpected and significant reduction” in the allocation of Pfizer vaccine from the state, system officials said in a statement. Press release.

“The health system is working to automatically reschedule all canceled appointments a week later, at the same time and on the same day of the week, as long as the state provides enough vaccine,” the statement said. Beaumont is also seeking more clarity from the state on these much-needed doses.

Michigan Department of Health and Human Services spokeswoman Lynn Sutfin said the state has been working with Beaumont Health over the past week to reconcile second-dose deficiencies, adding that it is “unfortunate that they have chosen to cancel their dose appointments.” two while we continue to work with them on this issue. “

CNN’s Amanda Sealy, Kaitlan Collins, Maggie Fox, Chris Boyette, Rebekah Riess, Amanda Watts, Sara Murray, Naomi Thomas and Michael Nedelman contributed to this report.

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