The real test of Covid-19 progress in the US is 2 weeks away, expert says

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Fri, 2021-06-04 18:47 — mike kraft

Americans are celebrating steps toward normalcy. But the real test of Covid-19 progress is 2 weeks away, expert says While Memorial Day was a milestone for a return to a sense of normalcy from the Covid-19 pandemic, it could take another two weeks to determine where the US really stands, an expert said. Madeline Holcombe, CNN CNN

CNN)While Memorial Day was a milestone for a return to a sense of normalcy from the Covid-19 pandemic, it could take another two weeks to determine where the US really stands, an expert said.

"In some ways, this was the first big stress test," CNN medical analyst Dr. Leana Wen said. "We have restrictions lifted en masse, people going about their normal lives. We know that in the past, after major holidays and an increase in travel, that we then had a substantial uptick in the rate of infections."

The US has had a lot to celebrate when it comes to recovery from the pandemic: More than half of the US has received at least one dose of Covid-19 vaccine, and 12 states have reached President Joe Biden's goal of having 70% of Americans getting at least one dose by July 4.

While the rate of vaccinations has slowed from a peak of 3.3 million doses to a seven-day average of about 1.1 million doses a day over the past week, an average of more than 615,000 people became fully vaccinated per day and an average of almost 523,000 additional people got a first shot each day, according to data published Wednesday by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Overall, more than 136 million people -- about 41% of the US population -- are fully vaccinated, and about 51% have received at least one dose of vaccine, according to CDC data. ...

But Wen cautioned the US will have to wait to see if the protection of a country still not fully vaccinated can overpower the risk of forgoing masks and engaging in public settings.

Even if cases plateau or taper off from their current falling rate, Wen said she worries some communities will remain vulnerable.

"You have parts of the country with very low vaccination rates," she said. "I really worry about the unvaccinated people in those areas spreading coronavirus to one another." ...

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