>>> NEW YORK CITY HAD ITS
BIGGEST CONCERT NOEFRIN OVER A Y WHERE THE FOO FIGHTERS PERFORMED
WHERE THE FOO FIGHTERS PERFORMED
IN FRONT OF AN ALL-VACCINATED
CROWD.
THINGS ARE ALSO HEADED THE WRONG
WAY IN STATES WITH LOW
VACCINATION RATES, WHERE THE
HIGHLY CONTAGIOUS DELTA VARIANT
IS GETTING A FOOTHOLD.
AT THE BEGINNING OF MAY,
PRESIDENT BIDEN ANNOUNCED AN
AGGRESSIVE GOAL OF VACCINATING
70% OF ADULTS BY JULY 4th.
TODAY THE BIDEN ADMINISTRATION
ANNOUNCED THE COUNTRY WILL
NARROWLY MISS THAT GOAL.
THE QUESTION IS NOW HOW TO PUSH
AGAINST WHAT LOOKS LIKE A
VACCINE CEILING IN MANY PARTS OF
THE COUNTRY.
DR. ANTHONY FAUCI IS WITH US.
EARLIER TODAY HE WARNED THE NEW
DELTA VARIANT IS THE GREATEST
THREAT TO ELIMINATING COVID-19
IN THE UNITED STATES, AND HE
JOINS ME NOW.
LETS START WITH THAT RIGHT NOW.
YOU KNOW, A FEW MONTHS AGO I
STARTED TAKING UP A KIND OF
FAIRLY BULLISH BANNER ON COVID
BECAUSE THE VACCINES LOOK SO
EFFICACIOUS, AND PARTICULARLY AS
DEPLOYMENT GOT BETTER IT FELT
LIKE, OKAY.
THE FIRST TIME I STARTED TO FEEL
BEARISH AGAIN IS IN THE LAST FEW
WEEKS, AND ITS BECAUSE OF THESE
NUMBERS.
THIS IS 14-DAY COVID CHANGING
CASES IN THE STATES WITH THE
HIGHEST CHANGES.
MISSOURI, 55%, 53, ARKANSAS 46%,
UTAH 24, ARIZONA, 8.
HOW WORRIED ARE YOU ABOUT THAT?
>> IM QUITE CONCERNED AT STATES
AND PEOPLE WHO DONT GET
VACCINATED, CHRIS.
THE SITUATION IS SO CLEAR, THE
DATA AFFIRMED.
IF YOU GET VACCINATED, YOU ARE
PROTECTED EVEN WITH THE DELTA
VARIANT, WHICH BY THE WAY HAS A
CAPACITY TO SPREAD FROM PERSON
TO PERSON.
AND WHEN YOURE INFECTED, IT HAS
A GREATER LIKELIHOOD OF GIVING
YOU SERIOUS DISEASE.
WE KNOW THAT AS A FACT FROM OUR
OWN COUNTRY, BUT PARTICULARLY
FROM THE EXPERIENCE IN THE UK.
THE VACCINES WE HAVE DO PROTECT
WELL AGAINST THE DELTA VARIANT.
SO, IF EVER THERE WAS A REASON
TO GET VACCINATED, ITS RIGHT
NOW BECAUSE WERE SEEING THIS
DELTA VARIANT DOUBLE EVERY TWO
WEEKS.
WERE UP TO 20.6% OF THE
ISOLATES NOW ARE DELTA VARIANTS.
A FEW WEEKS AGO, IT WAS LIKE 2%
OR 3% OR 4%.
SO, WEVE GOT TO GET THE JOB
DONE.
I MEAN, ITS REALLY UNFORTUNATE
AND SOMEWHAT PUZZLING WHEN THE
DATA ARE RIGHT IN FRONT OF YOU
AND YOU KNOW EXACTLY WHAT YOU
NEED TO DO TO PROTECT AGAINST
THESE TYPES OF NUMBERS WHICH YOU
SHOWED ON THE SCREEN.
AND YET SOME PEOPLE STILL ARE
NOT GETTING VACCINATED.
THAT IS VERY FRUSTRATING.
>> I GUESS THE QUESTION IS WHAT
TO DO.
ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I THINK
IS IMPORTANT TO COMMUNICATE IN
TERMS OF RISK HERE IS THERES
TWO PARTS TO THE RISK.
THERES VACCINATION AND YOUR
HEALTH AND AGE PROFILE, THEN
THERES THE RATE OF COMMUNITY
TRANSMISSION.
ONCE COMMUNITY TRANSMISSION
STARTS GOING UP, YOUR RISK IS
GOING UP.
THATS TRUE EVEN FOR VACCINATED
PEOPLE, BUT REALLY TRUE FOR
YOUNG, NON-VACCINATED PEOPLE, I
THINK, WHO A LOT OF HAVE FELT
FAIRLY IMMUNE FROM THIS OR
FAIRLY IN THESE PLACES.
WE SAW IT IN THE UK.
WE SAW HOSPITALIZATION AMONG
YOUNG PEOPLE GO UP IN A WAY THAT
WAS REALLY QUITE DISTINCT AND
WORRYING.
>> RIGHT.
WELL, FIRST OF ALL, YOU KNOW, WE
ARE DOING VERY WELL AMONG PEOPLE
WHO ARE ADULTS.
I MEAN, IF YOU LOOK AT 30 AND
OVER, WE HAVE GREATER THAN 70%
OF THOSE PEOPLE HAVE AT LEAST
ONE DOSE OF A VACCINE.
SO, THAT GROUP --
>> THATS INTERESTING.
>> BUT YOURE ABSOLUTELY
CORRECT, CHRIS -- YEAH.
YOURE ABSOLUTELY CORRECT.
WE NEED TO FOCUS ON THE 18 TO 26
YEAR OLDS BECAUSE THATS THE
GROUP THAT IN ENGLAND -- YOURE
ABSOLUTELY CORRECT -- IF YOU
LOOK AT THE DELTA VARIANT THAT
HAS NOW SURGED IN ENGLAND, ITS
PREDOMINANTLY AMONG YOUNGER
PEOPLE.
SO, YOU KNOW, ITS KIND OF A
MIXED BAG.
IF YOU LOOK AT THE TOTALITY OF
THE PICTURE, THE EMPHASIS ON
VACCINATION THAT PRESIDENT BIDEN
HAS MADE HAS BEEN QUITE FRANKLY
OVERALL VERY SUCCESSFUL.
WERE ALMOST AT THE 70%
VACCINATION WITH ONE DOSE OF
ADULTS WHEN WE REACH THE FOURTH
OF JULY.
IF WE DONT GET IT BY THEN,
WERE GOING TO GET IT WITHIN A
WEEK OR SO.
BUT WE DONT WANT TO STOP THERE.
THATS AN ASPIRATIONAL GOAL.
THE GOAL LINE IS CRUSHING THE
VIRUS WITH AS MANY VACCINATIONS
AS YOU POSSIBLY CAN.
>> AND I JUST THINK THIS IS
WHERE THERES TWO WORLDS THAT
SPOOL OUT BEFORE US, WHICH IS,
LOOK, IVE HAD YOU ON THE
PROGRAM MANY TIMES NOW.
IVE BEEN COVERING THIS AS JUST
A JOURNALIST AND NOT A PUBLIC
HEALTH EXPERT FOR WHATEVER, 15,
16 MONTHS.
BUT I KNOW ONE THING.
ITS EITHER GOING DOWN OR GOING
UP.
THE VIRUS GOES IN ONE DIRECTION.
ITS REALLY GROWING OR ITS SLIN
SHRINKING.
EVERYTHING CURVES.
WHEN YOU START TO THINK ABOUT
GROWING, YOU THINK ABOUT THE
THING BOPPING AROUND IN
COMMUNITIES WITH LOW VACCINATION
RATES, MAYBE FURTHER MUTATIONS.
AND WE ALSO KNOW WHAT LAST
WINTER WAS LIKE AND THE
DIFFERENCE BETWEEN -- AM I WRONG
ABOUT THAT?
THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A FULLY
VACCINATED COUNTRY AND NOT GOING
INTO THE WINTER IS MASSIVE.
>> WELL, ITS IMPORTANT IF
YOURE NOT VACCINATED.
IF YOU LOOK AT THE PEOPLE, THE
STATES, THE CITIES T, THE COUNTI
THAT ARE HARDLY VACCINATED,
THEYRE SAFE.
THEIR RISK IS EXTREMELY LOW.
WHAT WE WORRY ABOUT ARE THE
STATES YOU PUT UP ON THE SCREEN
AND THE PEOPLE IN THOSE STATES
WHO ARE AT RISK FOR A VARIANT
THATS QUITE PROBLEMATIC.
THATS THE SITUATION, CHRIS.
IF YOURE VACCINATED, YOU DONT
HAVE A RISK.
AND THATS THE REASON WHY WE SAY
ITS AS SIMPLE AS BLACK AND
WHITE.
YOURE VACCINATED, YOURE SAFE.
YOURE UNVACCINATED, YOURE AT
RISK.
SIMPLE AS THAT.
>> THE DATA YOU JUST MENTIONED I
HADNT SEEN BROKEN OUT, AND IT
MIGHT BE THE CDC DASHBOARD HAS
GOTTEN VERY GOOD AND I JUST
MIGHT NOT HAVE GOTTEN THROUGH
IT.
IF YOU TAKE ADULTS 30 AND OVER,
THAT YOURE IN THE -- WEVE
REACHED THAT THRESHOLD, RIGHT?
70% WITH AT LEAST ONE SHOT.
SO, THAT REALLY SPEAKS TO ME
THAT THERE REALLY IS A
DEMOGRAPHIC GROUP HERE THAT
THERE HAS TO BE SOME MESSAGING
FOCUS ON.
I DONT KNOW WHAT THAT LOOKS
LIKE, BUT THAT SEEMS LIKE PRETTY
IMPORTANT.
>> AND THATS WHAT WE ARE DOING,
CHRIS.
I MEAN, WHEN YOU TALK ABOUT OUR
FAMOUS BASKETBALL ANALOGIES THAT
WE PLAY WITH EACH OTHER BACK AND
FORTH, THIS IS A FULL-COURT
PRESS TIME.
THIS IS DOING THINGS -- IVE
BEEN ON TIKTOK WITH YOUNG
PEOPLE.
IVE GONE WITH MAYOR BOWSER
KNOCKING ON DOORS.
I WAS TALKING TO THE CONFERENCE
OF MAYORS TODAY OF GETTING THE
MAYORS OUT IN THE STREETS,
GETTING THEIR CONSTITUENTS
VACCINATED, PARTICULARLY
CONCENTRATING ON THAT YOUNGER
DEMOGRAPHIC BETWEEN 18 AND 30 --
26, EXCUSE ME.
>> WHAT IS THE -- WHATS THE
COST LOOK LIKE?
I MEAN, WEVE GOT THE DELTA
VARIANT BOPPING AROUND.
THE OTHER THING I KEEP THINKING
ABOUT IS THIS VARIANT DOES SEEM
VERY DISTINCT.
WEVE HAD OTHER PREVIOUS
ITERATIONS.
BUT JUST THE TRANSMISSION -- THE
MUTATION RISK AS WE GO
FORWARD -- THE QUESTION OF
WHETHER THIS IS SOMETHING THAT
WE, LIKE, SUPPRESS AND KILL OFF
OR SORT OF SNUFF OUT BOTH HERE
IN THE U.S. AND GLOBALLY OR WE
BASICALLY END UP WITH THIS
UNENDING CHAIN OF MUTATIONS
BOPPING AROUND ALL THE TIME,
WHICH IS ALMOST TOO AWFUL TO
CONTEMPLATE.
>> YES, CHRIS.
YOU SAID IT WELL.
IT COULD BE SAID REALLY SIMPLY.
VIRUSES DONT MUTATE IF THEY
DONT REPLICATE.
SO, IF YOU STOP THE TRANSMISSION
AND THE REPLICATION, YOURE NOT
GOING TO GET ANYMORE MUTATIONS.
IF YOU ALLOW THE VIRUS TO SPREAD
AND REPLICATE, THEN YOU GIVE IT
AN OPPORTUNITY TO MUTATE.
AND THATS THE REASON WHAT WE
HAVE TO SHUT IT DOWN.
SHUT IT DOWN THROUGHOUT THE
COUNTRY IN ALL AGE GROUPS.
>> FINAL QUESTION.
KIDS OVER 12, I THINK, RIGHT,
ARE UNDER THE EMERGENCY USE
AUTHORIZATION FOR AT LEAST ONE
OF THE VACCINES.
DO WE HAVE ANY THOUGHT OF THAT
AGE DROPPING DOWN, ANY TIMELINE
FOR THAT?
>> OH, ABSOLUTELY, CHRIS.
WERE DOING STUDIES RIGHT NOW IN
CHILDREN FROM 12 TO 9 AND THEN
FROM 9 TO 6 AND THEN FROM 6 TO
2.
THEYRE CALLED AGE DEESCALATION
STUDIES.
WERE IN THE MIDDLE OF THAT NOW.
WE ANTICIPATE BY THE TIME WE GET
INTO THE FALL AND EARLY WINTER
WE WILL HAVE THE CAPABILITY
BECAUSE OF THE KNOWLEDGE THAT WE
GENERATED TO VACCINATE CHILDREN
OF ALMOST ANY AGE.
>> THATS I THINK THE MOST