America is halfway there.
Half of all the people in the United States are now fully vaccinated against COVID-19, according to data released on Friday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The CDC numbers include people of all ages and provide some optimism as the nation battles a surge in cases caused by the COVID-19 delta variant, CNBC reported. Cases involving the delta variant have risen 142% in the past two weeks, according to NBC News. Data compiled by the Department of Health and Human Services shows that hospitalizations are also on the rise.
According to a tweet from White House COVID-19 data director Cyrus Shahpar, more than 821,000 doses were administered over the previous day’s total, including 565,000 people who got their first shot.
Friday just in: +821K doses reported administered, including 565K newly vaccinated. 7-day average of newly vaccinated is up 11% from last week and 44% over past 2 weeks. 50% of Americans (all ages) are now fully vaccinated. Keep going! 🇺🇸
— Cyrus Shahpar (@cyrusshahpar46) August 6, 2021
The first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine was administered on Dec. 14, 2020, according to CNN. By March 2021, 25% of the U.S. population had been vaccinated and it took 4 1/2 months to reach the 50% mark, according to the CDC.
According to CDC data, an average of 699,261 doses have been administered over the past seven days. An average of 464,778 people initiated vaccination in the past week, according to the CDC.
Vaccination rates remain low in Southern states like Mississippi, Arkansas and Louisiana, where less than 40% of the population is fully vaccinated, NBC News reported. Northeastern states, such as Maine, Massachusetts and Vermont lead the country with more than 60% of its residents vaccinated, the network reported.
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