“With a COVID-19 vaccine perhaps just days away in the U.S., most of California headed into another lockdown Sunday because of the surging outbreak and top health officials warned Americans that this is no time to let their guard down. “The vaccine’s critical,” Dr. Deborah Birx, the White House coronavirus response coordinator, said on NBC’s “Meet the Press.” “But it’s not going to save us from this current surge. Only we can save us from this current surge.” A Food and Drug administration advisory panel is scheduled to take up a request Thursday to authorize emergency use of Pfizer’s vaccine. Vaccinations could begin just days later, though initial supplies will be rationed, and shots are not expected to become widely available until the spring. With the U.S. facing what could be a catastrophic winter, top government officials warned Americans anew to wear masks, practice social distancing and follow other basic measures — precautions that President Donald Trump and members of the administration have often disdained. “I hear community members parroting back those situations — parroting back that masks don’t work, parroting back that we should work towards herd immunity, parroting back that gatherings don’t result in super-spreading events,” Birx said. “And I think our job is to constantly say those are myths, they are wrong and you can see the evidence base.” WATCH: Dr. Deborah Birx dispels misinformation around Covid risks, says “our job is to constantly say, ‘those are myths.’” #MTP “It is frustrating because not only do we know what works, governors and mayors used those tools to stem the tide in the spring and the summer.” pic.twitter.com/EETmbg1z2D— Meet the Press (@MeetThePress) December 6, 2020 The virus is blamed for over 280,000 deaths and more than 14.6 million confirmed infections in the U.S. New cases per day have rocketed to an all-time high of more than 190,000 on average. Deaths per day have surged to an average of more than 2,160, a level last seen during the dark days in April, when the outbreak was centered around New York. The number of Americans now in the hospital with the coronavirus topped 100,000 for the first time over the past few days. In California, the first place to enact a statewide lockdown last spring, new stay-at-home orders were set to take effect Sunday night in Southern California, much of the San Francisco Bay area and other areas. Gov. Gavin Newsom said he hopes the new lockdown order is the last one he has to issue, declaring the vaccine offers “light at the end of the tunnel.” Once vaccines are offered widely, they could offer long-lasting protection against COVID-19, the head of the U.S. vaccine development effort said. Dr. Moncef Slaoui told CNN’s “State of the Union” that only time will tell for certain but that the vaccine’s effectiveness could last for “many, many years.” ___ Associated Press writers Adam Beam and Kathleen Ronayne in Sacramento, California, and Hope Yen in Washington contributed to this story.
Fauci Warns Christmas May Bring More COVID-19 Cases Than Thanksgiving
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["Dr. Anthony Fauci has warned that Christmas and Hanukkah may bring more COVID-19 cases than the surge anticipated from Thanksgiving due to the number of days people are likely to spend celebrating with family and fr...
Mary Trump Warns What Her Uncle Will Put ‘Considerable Energy’ Into Post-Presidency
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["Mary Trump doesn’t think her uncle, Donald Trump, will run for president again — despite his teasing this week of a 2024 campaign. But the author and clinical psychologist — who released the tell-all memoir “Too Muc...
16 States Log Record-High Average COVID-19 Cases Since Thanksgiving
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["The coronavirus crisis continued to reach new heights over the Thanksgiving holiday as average daily caseloads showed no sign of declining across much of the country. Sixteen states — including Arizona, California,...
U.S. Coronavirus Cases Soar Past 13 Million As Holiday Season Kicks Off
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["The United States has now recorded more than 13 million coronavirus cases, representing around 4% of the country’s total population, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. Nearly 265,000 people acro...
‘We’re Drowning’: COVID Cases Flood Hospitals In America’s Heartland
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["(Reuters) - Dr. Drew Miller knew his patient had to be moved. The vital signs of the 30-year-old COVID-19 victim were crashing, and Kearny County Hospital in rural Lakin, Kansas, just wasn’t equipped to handle the c...
Conservative News Site Warns Donald Trump: ‘Concede And Move On’
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["The Washington Examiner urged President Donald Trump to “move on” and accept defeat in the 2020 election in an editorial published Friday. The conservative news outlet warned that, otherwise, Trump’s ongoing attempt...