The US might enter a fifth wave as the threat of the new Omicron variant looms, warned Dr. Anthony Fauci on Sunday.
"We have the potential to go into a fifth wave, or the magnitude of any increase, if you want to call it that," Fauci told CBS News' "Face the Nation."
He once again urged Americans to get a vaccine against the coronaviruses and to get booster shots as well.
Fauci said that they can mitigate any increase if they do that successfully.
It is possible that we will see another surge if we don't do it well. "How bad it gets is dependent on us and how we mitigate."
According to the data compiled by the University, a little more than half of the US population is protected against the coronaviruses. Fauci said that the US needs to get up to around 90% in order to achieve herd immunity.
The nation prepares to deal with the threat of the Omicorn variant.
The Omicron variant, which was first detected in South Africa, could easily spread across the world. It has spread to several other countries, including Israel, Belgium, England, Australia and Austria, prompting travel restrictions across Europe, Asia, and North America. Two cases of the variant have been found in the UK. Fauci said that it's likely to have already arrived here.
The Omicorn is labeled a "variant of concern-sars-cov-2-variant-of-concern" by the World Health Organization because of its unique mutations, which might resist the effects of a vaccine.
It's not clear if existing COVID-19 vaccines will protect against the variant. Pfizer and Moderna are considering their options.
