As COVID-19 Cases Surge Again, Public Health Leaders See A Turning Point

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🗓️ 6 May 2022

⏱️ 11 minutes

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Summary

For a few months, it looked like COVID-19 was retreating in the United States. But cases are rising across the country again. Still, public health leaders are signaling that the U.S. is turning another corner in this pandemic, and that continued COVID surges might just be part of the new normal.

NPR Science correspondent Michaeleen Doucleff reports on what the new Omicron variant could have in store for the U.S. in coming weeks and months, and what scientists know about Americans' COVID immunity.

Andy Slavitt, former senior advisor to President Joe Biden on COVID, explains what the "endemic phase" could look like.

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Transcript

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0:00.0	for a few months. It looked like
0:03.1	COVID-19 was retreating in the US.
0:05.5	Then infection rates in the Northeast
0:08.0	approaching the highest levels now
0:10.4	in nearly three months. Yeah,
0:12.0	COVID cases are rising across the country.
0:14.7	Again, pushing New York City to raise
0:17.2	its alert level from low to medium risk.
0:19.7	The increase was concentrated in the
0:21.8	Northeast at first. California is once again
0:24.5	seeing a jump in COVID-19 cases.
0:26.5	We were reported nearly 4,000 new cases.
0:28.7	COVID infections are rising in Hawaii.
0:30.9	And still last week, Dr. Anthony Fauci,
0:33.5	President Biden's chief medical advisor,
0:35.5	told PBS NewsHour is Judy Woodruff.
0:38.2	What we hope to do, I don't believe,
0:40.6	and I've spoken about this widely,
0:43.2	we're not going to eradicate this virus.
0:45.9	If we can keep that level very low
0:48.6	and intermittently vaccinate people,
0:50.5	and I don't know how often that would have to be Judy,
	...

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