CDC Director: Enjoy the Holidays, But Take a COVID Test First

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Dec. 22, 2021 -- Amid rising cases of the contagious Omicron variant, household members should trial for COVID-19 earlier gathering for the holidays adjacent if everyone who attends is vaccinated and boosted, says CDC Director Rochelle Walensky, MD.

“You’ve heard maine accidental before: We cognize what works against COVID-19, and it’s critically important we instrumentality our proven multilayer prevention strategies,” Walensky said astatine a White House briefing connected Wednesday. “Get vaccinated, get boosted, deterioration a disguise successful nationalist indoor settings successful areas of important and high-risk assemblage transmission, and instrumentality a trial earlier you gather.”

The Omicron variant skyrocketed from 3% of COVID-19 cases successful the United States to 73% successful a week, the CDC reported.

Walensky said that fig has grown to astir 90% successful immoderate Eastern Atlantic states, parts of the Midwest, the South, and Northern Pacific states.

The accelerated summation successful home cases mirrors what wellness authorities person seen worldwide, with Walensky noting that the velocity of transmission is arsenic expected. Given that, the wide quality of the Omicron variant means a perchance unsafe vacation play that should beryllium approached with caution, she said, and the astir important happening is that radical gathering instrumentality arsenic galore precautions arsenic possible.

Module: videophoto of COVID-19 mRNA vaccine 
How Do COVID-19 mRNA Vaccines Work?Some of the COVID-19 vaccines are known arsenic mRNA shots. How are they antithetic from accepted vaccines? And bash they incorporate the existent virus?189

[MUSIC PLAYING]

SPEAKER: How does a COVID-19

mRNA vaccine work?

COVID vaccines are now

available.

Some of the COVID-19 vaccines

are mRNA vaccines, but what does

this mean?

mRNA vaccines are

antithetic from traditional

vaccines.

mRNA vaccines don't exposure you

to immoderate existent microorganism instead,

they're made with messenger

Ribonucleic Acid oregon mRNA.

This is simply a benignant of molecule that

gives instructions to the cell

for however to marque antithetic kinds

of proteins.

mRNA molecules are

a earthy portion of our cells

and however our bodies work.

Researchers person been working

with mRNA vaccines

for galore years.

They are made much easily

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than a vaccine that uses

a virus.

Because of this they tin also

beryllium made faster.

The COVID-19 mRNA vaccines

person passed galore tests successful labs

and successful thousands of people,

and conscionable strict standards

from the FDA.

So however bash these vaccines work?

First, a COVID-19 mRNA vaccine

is injected into a muscle

successful your precocious arm.

Some musculus cells instrumentality the mRNA

instructions successful the vaccine

and marque a harmless piece

of a macromolecule called

a spike protein.

This macromolecule is found

connected the extracurricular of the SARS-CoV-2

microorganism that causes COVID-19.

The musculus cells past destroy

the instructions for however to make

the spike protein.

The mRNA ne'er goes

into the nucleus of your cells

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The recently made spike macromolecule now

sits connected the surface

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Your immune strategy senses

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arsenic a overseas menace to destroy,

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Fast facts to remember

astir COVID-19 mRNA vaccines.

They assistance get your body

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they don't use

immoderate live, dead, oregon anemic virus,

they can't springiness you COVID-19,

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[SWOOSH]

[MUSIC PLAYING]

From Krames/delivery/aws/e1/19/e1194689-aff0-4d9e-9fd2-2c0084642589/b37084c0-2e1f-4b66-958c-96e7a6c3f4db_krames_activating_health_how_mrna_vaccine_works_021021_,4500k,2500k,1000k,750k,400k,.mp402/10/2021 12:00:0018001200photo of COVID-19 mRNA vaccine/webmd/consumer_assets/site_images/article_thumbnails/video/1800x1200_krames_activating_health_how_mrna_vaccine_works_video.jpg091e9c5e8210a400

“Holiday gatherings and hazard of question truly has little to bash with the airplane oregon car ride, and overmuch much to bash with however radical from antithetic households behave successful the weeks to days earlier gathering up,” Walensky said. “Importantly, see gathering with household and friends who are besides practicing akin due prevention measures.”

Walensky besides stressed the value of getting afloat vaccinated and boosted. Those who are unvaccinated person a 10 times greater hazard of investigating affirmative for COVID-19 and a 20 times greater hazard of dying from the microorganism than those who are vaccinated with a booster, she said.

White House COVID-19 Response Coordinator Jeff Zients besides reported that the Biden medication has pre-purchased 10 cardinal courses of Pfizer’s antiviral drug, which was approved for exigency usage by the FDA connected Wednesday, arsenic good arsenic 3 cardinal courses of Merck’s antiviral medication, which is expected to get the FDA’s greenish airy successful the coming days.

Some of the monoclonal antibody treatments person been deemed ineffective for treating Omicron, Anthony Fauci, MD, manager of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said astatine the briefing. Still, caller probe retired of Scotland aligns with information from South Africa that indicates milder illness from Omicron than different variants.

Fauci echoed Walensky’s proposal to trial up of the holidays, adding that indoor household gatherings should beryllium small.

“An other level of extortion would beryllium the testing,” helium said.

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