The Government insists on the importance of getting vaccinated to stop the omicron variant but rules out new restrictions

By Zeke Miller -

President Joe Biden on Monday will insist on asking citizens to get vaccinated, including booster doses, in his bid to quell concerns about the new omicron variant of COVID-19, but does not plan to adopt new restrictions on it. stop its spread, according to his chief medical adviser.

Anthony Fauci, the country's leading infectious disease expert, assured that no case of the new variant has yet been detected in the United States, but considers it “inevitable” that it will end up arriving if it has not yet done so.

Fauci added that scientists hope to know in the coming weeks to what extent existing vaccines against COVID-19 protect against this strain and if it is more dangerous compared to previous ones, according to ABC.

"We really don't know," he explained, calling the speculation about it "premature."

Why is getting vaccinated the best barrier against the omicron variant?

A doctor explains it

Nov. 29, 202103: 59

The new variant, discovered by South African researchers, poses a new challenge to Biden's efforts to contain the pandemic, mitigate its impact on the economy and restore a sense of normalcy to the United States at Christmas time.

[WHO warns that the omicron variant of COVID-19 represents a "very high" global risk as it spreads]

Biden will speak about the urgency for all citizens to be vaccinated to protect themselves from the variants, especially considering that approximately 80 million people 5 years and older have not yet received any doses.

However, Biden is not expected to announce any additional restrictions, beyond the measure adopted last week - and in effect since Monday - that restricts air connections with South Africa and seven other countries in the region.

Other countries have also announced the closure of their borders to tourists, amid a series of severe mechanisms to prevent the spread of the omicron variant, but Fauci indicated that the United States will not follow this trail.

Concern in the United States about the danger of the omicron variant of COVID-19

Nov. 29, 202101: 49

Asked if the adoption of more restrictions by the government is imminent, he replied: "I don't think so at all."

In an interview on CBS, he said: "Let's not talk about closings."

Fauci said there is no need to panic over the new variant, but stressed: "We should be concerned and our concern should prompt us to do the things that we know work," such as vaccination.

The measure of limiting most travel from countries where the omicron variant was first identified is to give the United States time to learn more about this strain and "step up" the national vaccination campaign, the expert stressed. in infectious diseases.

[The omicron variant of the coronavirus advances rapidly]

"Give it a couple of weeks because if you can keep things going for a couple of weeks you can do a lot of things," he said.

Even so, he said that omicron will eventually reach the country and could, like the delta variant, become the dominant strain, since the new strain "has a transmissibility advantage" over others.

Pharmaceutical companies are already adjusting their existing COVID-19 vaccines to better target the omicron variant, but Fauci noted that citizens should prioritize their first vaccines or a booster dose now, rather than waiting for a tailored formula.

"I strongly suggest you get vaccinated now," he asked.

Depending on what scientists learn about the omicron variant in the coming weeks, "we may not need" specific boosters to contain this strain, he said.

A woman receives the COVID-19 vaccine from Pfizer in Johannesburg, South Africa, on October 21, 2021 Denis Farrell / AP

Any specific vaccine against the omicron variant probably couldn't start production for another two to three months, so getting booster doses now is a "very important initial line of defense," said Paul Burton, chief medical officer for the vaccine maker. Modern

Burton said Moderna and other pharmaceutical companies are testing existing COVID-19 vaccines to determine their efficacy against the omicron variant.

"If we have to make a specific variant for omicron, we are going to take a few weeks, two or three months is probably what we are seeing to be able to really start manufacturing," Burton said on ABC.