No Evidence Omicron Variant Less Severe Than Delta
Laura Coates Live
CNN
4.2 • 2.5K Ratings
🗓️ 18 December 2021
⏱️ 46 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Covid cases rise by more than 50% from last week in Texas, Connecticut and Hawaii and a UK study finds no evidence the Omicron variant is any less severe than Delta. NYC’s incoming Mayor Eric Adams joins to discuss the Covid crisis, and whether the federal government should follow New York and other states in sending out at-home tests to people.
Also tonight: the defense rests after ex-officer Kim Potter breaks down on the stand as she recalls her fatal shooting of Daunte Wright, following mistaking her Taser for her loaded gun during a police traffic stop. Plus, the strange secret history of the “War on Christmas” and CNN’s Fareed Zakaria joins to discuss the factors behind President Biden’s sinking approval rating.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | News continues, let's hand over to Michael Smirconish and CNN tonight, Michael. |
| 0:07.0 | Anderson, thank you. I am Michael Smirconish. Welcome to CNN tonight. I've got the incoming |
| 0:12.2 | mayor of New York City here live in just a moment. He's going to face a COVID crisis |
| 0:17.1 | on day one when he takes office in just over two weeks, much like the rest of the country |
| 0:21.6 | is now experiencing. We have breaking news this Friday evening in the Omicron fight, |
| 0:26.9 | but it may only add to the confusion and contradictions that we're seeing all over the country. |
| 0:31.9 | A study from the UK finds no evidence in England that Omicron is any less severe than the Delta |
| 0:37.6 | variant. Remember that experts have been saying many cases around the world are mild or |
| 0:43.4 | at least for the vaccinated and the boosted. The study also finds the risk of getting |
| 0:48.0 | reinfected is five times higher with Omicron than Delta. And today the CDC director |
| 0:54.0 | made clear Omicron is about to take over the conversation in this country. |
| 0:59.7 | And although Delta continues to circulate widely in the United States, Omicron is increasing |
| 1:05.1 | rapidly and we expect it to become the dominant strain in the United States as it has |
| 1:10.6 | in other countries in the coming weeks. And that's not the only way that we're seeing |
| 1:15.9 | conflicting messages and actions as we wonder if this frightening deja vu is warranted. |
| 1:21.5 | Look at our schools tonight. One of the nation's 20 largest school districts, Prince George's |
| 1:26.1 | County in Maryland announced that it's going back to virtual learning until mid-January. |
| 1:31.4 | The school's chief says that allows educators and school staff to continue to teach quote |
| 1:35.8 | in conditions that prioritize their own health. But that news came just hours after the CDC |
| 1:41.9 | director pointed to new evidence that schools can stay open even if someone is infected. |
| 1:47.4 | She said there needs to be regular testing for anyone exposed instead of a quarantine |
| 1:52.0 | so as to keep parents from going back into teacher mode. Encouraging maybe, but even now |
... |
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