According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the United States achieved a significant milestone in its battle against COVID-19 on Friday, with half of all Americans now completely vaccinated against the virus.

According to the Centers for Disease Control, more than 165.9 million Americans, or 50 percent of the population of all ages, are completely vaccinated, with 193.7 million Americans having gotten at least one shot as of Friday.

COVID-19 Data Director Cyrus Shahpar reports that 565,000 new vaccinations were recorded in the United States on Friday. The one-week average of recent vaccinations has increased by 11 percent over the previous week and 44 percent over the last two weeks.

The vaccine surge comes as the country experiences a rise in infections caused by the highly infectious delta strain, which experts estimate accounts for about 80% of all new cases in the country. Officials from the White House have said that they think the increase in the number of individuals seeking vaccination is since the delta version of the virus poses a more danger in the areas that have been worst affected by the illness.

The White House COVID-19 response coordinator, Jeff Zients, said at a press conference on Thursday that “clearly, Americans are witnessing the effect of not being protected and not getting vaccinated.” ‘And people reacted by doing their bit, by rolling up their sleeves, and by getting vaccinated,’ says the author.

Zients said that the number of individuals who received a flu shot for the first time each day over the last three weeks had more than quadrupled in the states with the highest case rates. That assisted the United States in meeting President Joe Biden’s objective of vaccinating 70 percent of people, a month later than his original July 4 aim.

References
1. “Terrific Teeth Day Held at The Poe Center in Raleigh.” The Triangle Tribune, vol. 21, no. 44, Charlotte Post Publishing Co., 9 Feb. 2020, p. 8A.
2. DEA announces improvements to medication assisted treatment. https://www.dea.gov/press-releases/2020/02/26/dea-announces-improvements-medication-assisted-treatment
3. News in Brief 13 November 2020 | | UN News. https://news.un.org/en/audio/2020/11/1077622
4. CDC says 50% of Americans are now vaccinated; Florida reports worst week of new cases; 616K US deaths. Latest COVID-19 updates. https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/health/2021/08/07/cdc-americans-vaccinated-covid-florida-worst-week-anthony-fauci/5514204001/?utm_source=usatoday-Daily%20Briefing&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=baseline&utm_term=hero&utm_content=8872UT-E-NLETTER02