U.S. looking to lift ban on travel from South Africa: Fauci
The U.S. is looking to lift the ban on most travel from South Africa and neighboring countries “within a quite reasonable amount of time,” the nation’s top infectious disease expert said Sunday.
Travel restrictions were imposed by the U.S. and other countries after the omicron variant of COVID-19 was discovered in South Africa late last month, raising questions about its potency and the effectiveness of vaccines against the new strain.
“When the ban was put on, it was put to give us time to figure out just what is going on,” Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said on CNN’s “State of the Union.” “Now … as we’re getting more and more information about cases in our own country and worldwide, we are looking at that very carefully on a daily basis.”
“Hopefully, we will be able to lift that ban within a quite reasonable period of time,” he said.
The first known omicron case in the U.S. was reported Wednesday, less than a week after the Nov. 25 revelation that the variant had been identified in South Africa.
“Though it’s too early to really make any definitive statements about it, thus far, it does not look like there’s a great degree of severity to it,” said Fauci, the chief White House medical adviser.
He was asked about inflammatory comments from Wisconsin Republican Sen. Ron Johnson, who said Fauci has been “overhyping” COVID.
“Overhyping COVID?” said Fauci. “It’s already killed 780,000 Americans and over 5 million people worldwide. So I don’t have any clue of what he’s talking about.”
Meanwhile, the Food and Drug Administration is in talks with drug makers about streamlining a vaccine tailored to omicron, according to Dr. Rochelle Walensky, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
“Much of the vaccine is actually exactly the same, and, really, it would just be that mRNA code that would have to change,” Walensky said on ABC’s “This Week,” referring to a key component of the vaccines.
“Those conversations are ongoing, and, certainly, FDA will move swiftly, and CDC will move swiftly right thereafter,” she added.
With the omicron variant detected in the U.S., Walensky predicted cases are “likely to rise.”
“We know it has many mutations, more mutations than prior variants,” she said. “Many of those mutations have been associated with more transmissible variants, with evasion of some of our therapeutics, and potentially evasion of some of our immunity, and that’s what we’re watching really carefully.”
There have been about 95,000 COVID cases per day in the U.S.
Daily case numbers in New York City rose about 50% over the course of last month, according to city Health Department data. Statewide numbers more than doubled, according to data from Gov. Hochul’s office.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer called for a large supply of free at-home COVID test kits to be provided at community health centers and mobile sites in New York City and Long Island.
“While many portions of the country are waiting for the omicron variant to arrive, New York already has cases — but this doesn’t mean we should panic. It means we should be planning,” the New York Democrat said in a statement.
Eight omicron cases had been identified in the state as of Saturday.
“A key to controlling omicron is the at-home test, where you can swab your own nose, follow simple steps, determine if you have COVID, and take the right steps thereafter,” said Schumer.
Next month, the White House is set to release a plan to reimburse health insurance companies for the cost of at-home test kits, he added.
As bed capacity comes under strain at some New York hospitals, the state is evaluating whether to order them to end “non-essential, non-urgent” procedures in the coming days, Hochul said Friday.
On Sunday, she nodded to an expected increase in cases around the holidays.
“With a new variant circulating in New York, the best way to stay safe this holiday season is by getting vaccinated and boosted,” Hochul said in a statement.
With News Wire Services
