The White House Covid coordinator urges people to get vaccinated before the holiday

With hospital admissions for coronavirus and the flu soaring in the weeks after Thanksgiving, Dr. Ashish Jha said that families will be safer at the upcoming holiday gatherings if they get their updated vaccinations.

This year, hospitals are facing the simultaneous threat of Covid, influenza and RSV for the first time. Circulation of influenza and RSV was very low during the pandemic due to the widespread masking and social distancing implemented in response to Covid, but as most people return to their normal lives, all three viruses are circulating widely.

December ace. On Sept. 14, the 7-day average of new Covid cases per week was 65,067, down 2.9% from the previous week, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

“The good news here is that we can prevent that infection from becoming a serious disease if people go out and get the updated bivalent vaccine,” Jha told ABC’s “This Week” on Sunday.

Public health officials said many people may be at higher risk of getting the flu and RSV this year because they haven’t had the infection in the past two years, which means they have lower immunity. The CDC reports that about 23,503 patients have been hospitalized with the flu this week, while hospitalizations appear to be peaking in some states.

The number of hospitalizations for people with Covid has topped more than 5,000 per day on average, according to the CDC.

Former Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Dr. It’s going to be a “tough few weeks,” Scott Gottlieb said, telling CBS News’ “Face the Nation” on Sunday that this year’s respiratory pathogen season is “the worst in recent memory.”

It was a historic year for the flu in particular, Gottlieb said.

“80% of hospital beds are now full. Hospitals have not been this full since the peak of the Omicron wave last winter,” he said. “The difference is that last winter, 25% of hospital beds were filled with Covid admissions. Right now, only 6% are filled with Covid admissions.”

Although it is safe to gather in groups this year, Jha said staying up to date on vaccines will be essential to keeping people out of the hospital.

“I got the flu shot last year,” he said. “I don’t expect it to protect me this winter.” “I go out and get a flu shot every winter, the same way people have to go out to get their covid shot.”