Fauci says US COVID-19 testing shortage must be addressed

Anthony Fauci at a US Senate hearing (Al Drago/Pool/Reuters)

Scarcity of tests for COVID-19 observed in United State It will soon be resolved, said Dr. Anthony Fauci, the White House’s advisor on the fight against the pandemic, as the country faces a spike in cases due to the omicron variable.

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“One of the problems right now is that (the tests) won’t be fully available to everyone until January,” the epidemiologist told ABC.

“We are solving the testing issue and this will be resolved soon,” he continued, also acknowledging his frustration with product shortages.

For the festive season, the United States has recorded a particularly high demand for auditions, especially at-home performance groups.

Meanwhile, the number of COVID-19 cases continues to increase dramatically due to the spread of the omicron variant, averaging more than 175,000 new infections per day in the past week, according to data from the CDC, the main federal public health agency.

Fauci said these events are partly responsible for the “high demand” and the resulting shortage of testing.

“It is clear that we have to do better,” he said.

President Joe Biden announced last week that the federal government has purchased nearly 500 million kits that will be given away free to anyone who requests them.

But those tests will only be available in January, drawing heavy criticism of the White House, whose strategy to combat Covid-19 has mainly focused on vaccination.

On December 6, days after omicron was first discovered in the United States, presidential spokeswoman Jen Psaki replied simply, “We should send every American a free trial, right?”

Referring to omicron’s properties, Fauci said on Sunday that it was an “extraordinarily contagious” variant, but cited studies in South Africa and the United Kingdom that appear to suggest cases are less serious.