US needs âto do much betterâ on Covid vaccine uptake
Only about a third of the US population has had a booster vaccination, says Dr Anthony Fauci.
The Chief Medical Advisor to President Joe Biden, Dr Anthony Fauci, has told the Âé¶čÉç the United States is ânot doing very wellâ on Covid vaccine uptake.
Noting that roughly two-thirds of the US population are fully vaccinated and only a third has had a booster vaccine, Dr Fauci said âwe need to do much betterâ.
Speaking to Hardtalkâs Stephen Sackur, Dr Fauci responded to President Bidenâs comment that âthe pandemic is overâ, asserting that the President "could have used better wordsâ. Dr Fauci said that although the US was âmuch better offâ than it had been, technically speaking the Covid-19 pandemic was ânot overâ .
The United States has over a million Covid deaths, far higher than any other country.
Despite Dr Fauciâs previous prediction that Covid would be âbehind usâ by now, an average of about 400 people in the country continue to die each day. Dr Fauci acknowledged that even when compared to âlow and middle-income countriesâ the US has not fared well.
Dr Fauci, who will step down in December after advising US Presidents for 38 years, insisted that President Biden âtakes the Covid outbreak very seriouslyâ.
When asked whether Bidenâs statement was damaging to trust and public health, Dr Fauci considered that characterisation to be âa bit unfairâ.