Biden told it will take two weeks to have definitive data on Omicron variant

WASHINGTON, Nov. 28 (Reuters) – Senior U.S. Infectious Disease Official Dr. Anthony Fauci, said President Joe Biden on Sunday it will take about two weeks to get final information on the new Coronavirus variant Omicron, which has triggered new travel restrictions and rocked financial markets.

Biden, who was returning to Washington after the Thanksgiving holiday weekend, was briefed personally by his coronavirus response team on Sunday afternoon as officials expect the new variant to be released to the United States despite an impending ban on travelers from southern Africa, where it was first discovered States will reach.

Fauci said he believed existing vaccines would likely provide “some level of protection against severe cases of COVID,” and officials reiterated their recommendation for vaccinated Americans to receive booster vaccinations, according to a reading of the briefing.

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Biden should inform the public about the new variant and the US response on Monday, the White House said.

Omicron, which was first discovered in southern Africa, has now been confirmed in Australia, Belgium, Botswana, the United Kingdom, Denmark, Germany, Hong Kong, Israel, Italy, the Netherlands, France, South Africa, and the United States’ neighboring north, Canada. Continue reading

Earlier on Sunday, Fauci said on ABC News’ This Week that the new variant would “inevitably” hit the United States.

“There is clearly an indication that it is capable of broadcasting quickly. That’s what worries us now,” he added on NBC.

US officials asked South Africa for more information about the new variant. Minister of Health and Human Services, Xavier Becerra, spoke to South African Minister of Health Joe Phaahla on Sunday and praised the country’s transparency, according to a reading from the meeting.

Its occurrence in the United States, where 30% of the population hasn’t received a single dose of the vaccine, could undermine the country’s recovery nearly two years after the onset of COVID-19 and the local health systems already being taxed by the recent Delta variant will continue to pressurize.

Rising cases as colder weather forces more people indoors has also led some hospital systems and states, including New York, to declare emergencies.

So far, nearly 782,000 people have died of COVID-19 in the United States since early 2020, most of any country in the world, amid over 48 million infections, Reuters data shows.

TRAVELERS PROHIBITED, NO FLIGHTS

The United States is joining other nations to block the transmission by imposing travel restrictions.

People are entering the baggage claim area from the international arrivals terminal as the US resumes air and land borders for vaccinated travelers with coronavirus disease (COVID-19) for the first time since the COVID-19 restrictions were imposed at Seattle’s Sea-Tac Airport to open. Washington, USA November 8, 2021. REUTERS / Lindsey Wasson

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Starting Monday at 00:01 a.m. ET (0501 GMT), almost all foreigners who have been in any of the eight South African countries in the past 14 days will be denied entry and Americans will be warned against traveling to those countries. Continue reading

U.S. citizens and legal permanent residents of the United States who have traveled to the countries will still be able to enter the United States and no new screening or tracing requirements have been introduced. Continue reading

Delta Air Lines (DAL.N) and United Airlines (UAL.O) flights have continued from South Africa to the USA since the variant was discovered.

Fauci and other senior officials said the sudden outbreak of cases made Omicron worrying and it was unclear how current vaccines or therapeutics could be affected.

“We need more data there before we can say with confidence that this isn’t a severe version of the virus, but we should find out in the next few weeks,” said the outgoing director of the National Institutes of Health, Dr. Francis Collins, opposite Fox News Sunday. . “

The vaccine manufacturers Pfizer / BioNTech (PFE.N), (22UAy.DE) and Moderna (MRNA.O) expect further information shortly. Continue reading

“We have a few more weeks of uncertainty to go through,” said Dr. Moderna chief medical officer Paul Burton told CNN that the portability and severity of Omicron, as well as the effectiveness of current vaccines, are still unknown.

‘CLARION CALL’ FOR SHOTS

Fauci urged Americans to continue receiving COVID-19 vaccines and booster vaccines while experts evaluate Omicron.

“This is a resounding call … (to) get vaccinated,” he told NBC.

The United States has registered over 1.1 million new COVID-19 cases in the past 14 days, up 9% from the previous two weeks, Reuters data shows, with Michigan and Minnesota leading the nation in new cases, based on infections per 100,000 population.

The percentage of COVID-19 tests that came up positive in New York state has doubled to 4.23% since last month, underscoring the need for vaccinations, Governor Kathy Hochul said in a statement.

“Cases are increasing across New York state, and the new variant of Omicron poses a very real threat to the advances we’ve made,” Hochul said.

The variation could affect the rest of the U.S. holiday season and potentially impact companies’ plans to return to offices.

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Writing from Susan Heavey; Additional coverage from Nandita Bose, Chris Gallagher, Joel Schectman, David Shepardson, and Simon Lewis in Washington; and Matt Scuffham, Megan Davies, Peter Szekely, and Nathan Layne in New York; Editing by Daniel Wallis and Stephen Coates

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

https://www.reuters.com/world/us/us-braces-omicron-prepares-african-country-travel-ban-2021-11-28/