The White House reportedly issued a warning to Congress on Friday, claiming that as many as 100 million Americans could get infected with COVID-19 this fall and winter, if it doesn't receive new funding for vaccines and coronavirus testing, according to The Hill.
The report, citing a Biden administration senior official, says the median range of coronavirus models from outside experts suggests "significantly more" Americans will catch the virus in the coming months, particularly if there's a new variant.
Citing reports, that money would get more Americans updated on vaccines this fall, while also ramping up nationwide testing.
On its CDC.gov website, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends "everyone ages 5 or older get vaccinated for COVID-19, and everyone 12 or older get a booster" for maximized protection.
In The Hill report, the senior administration official cautioned the anticipated fall/winter COVID-19 wave is currently not a cause for panic, especially with new tools available such as the Pfizer pill Paxlovid, along with the various vaccines.
The White House merely wants to get ahead of the wave, in relatively short order.
According to The Hill, Moderna and Pfizer are working on new versions of the vaccine (likely debuting in the fall) that could potentially combat newer variant strains.
For example, the so-called bivalent vaccine "would target the omicron variant as well as the original strain."
If Congress doesn't approve new funds for COVID-19, the senior Biden administration official says existing funds for testing, new treatments, and vaccine education and outreach could be grouped together, as a means of buying "enough updated vaccines only for the elderly," who are the most susceptible to contracting the coronavirus.
However, without new funding, supplies of Paxlovid "are expected to run out by October or November," according to the Biden official.
In March, The White House reportedly asked for $22.5 billion to combat the anticipated COVID-19 wave.
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