NIH National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases Director Anthony Fauci addresses the every day press briefing on the White House in Washington, January 21, 2021.
Jonathan Ernst | Reuters
Dr. Anthony Fauci on Tuesday will give what is anticipated to be his last public briefing on the Covid-19 pandemic because the White House chief medical advisor.
Fauci announced earlier this yr that he’ll step down in December after serving as the general public face of the USA’ coronavirus pandemic response for greater than two years.
He’ll give an update alongside Dr. Ashish Jha, head of the White House Covid task force. They’re expected to encourage people to get their Covid boosters and flu shots as soon as possible.
Public health officials have repeatedly warned that the U.S. will likely face one other wave of Covid this winter as people travel and gather for the vacations.
The brand new boosters, which goal the variant omicron BA.5, were quickly rolled out in an effort to go off a serious surge. But only about 11% of those people eligible have received their shot to this point.
The U.S. is already facing a severe flu season, with hospitalizations at a decade high.
And respiratory syncytial virus, or RSV, is hospitalizing children at a much higher rate than in pre-pandemic seasons.
Hospitals and emergency departments are increasingly taxed by people in search of treatment for respiratory illnesses.
Kid’s hospitals last week called on the Biden administration to declare a public health emergency to offer more flexibility to deal with the surge of patients.