>> building a better bay area, moving forward finding solutions. this is abc 7 news. anchor: good afternoon and thank you for joining us. you're watching getting answers. we are asking experts your questions every day at 3:00 to get answers were you in real time. we are just a few days away from the new year, time to start thinking about resolutions if you make them. a stanford school of medicine professor says it is keyed to be mindful of the goals you set so you can have a better routine in 2022. we will get is expert advice coming up at 3:20. there was a lot to cover about the pandemic. christmas became the super-spreader event that

experts feared. our special correspondent is a member of our vaccine team tracking the case count and headlines you need to know. dr. badel, good to see you. happy holidays. >> happy holidays to you as well. i hope everyone in your house is happy and safe in the second dystopian christmas we are seeing. to be honest we had a great time and we still had christmas dinner, we had family come over but we took all of the safety protocols. we had a conversation with every person who is here about vaccination status and the appetizer course were rapid antigen tests. anchor: here is a work of, i love it -- covid test, i love

it. let's do our first round of two truths and ally -- and lie. help me identify which of these statements is incorrect. for the 20th week in a row more than 100,000 children have tested positive for sars-cov-2. new cdc guidelines have separate recommendations were vaccinated versus unvaccinated for post exposure guidance. number three, antigen test have -- tests have held up their sensitivity to omicron. i think number three is true.

separate recommendations only for postexposure. i feel like that could be the one. producer, do we have >> the audience has got to chime in. ama: i feel confident we are going with number two. >> number two is actually true. this is part of the criticism of the new guidelines is there is not a differentiation for actual positive tests, this is exposure. they say if you are exposed to somebody else to list tested positive for sars-cov-2 and you are vaccinated and boosted you might be completely fine, but if you are unvaccinated you should quarantine yourself for five days, whereas if you test positive there is no distinction

between people who are vaccinated or unvaccinated, which is tricky right now. a is actually true true true tre we are seeing so many positive test in the pediatric population. c is false. if you have symptoms and you get a negative antigen test is bent to repeat that test to make sure. ama: that was what i was going to say, how quickly, is a day enough? >> omicron is behaving slightlyh differently than delta. people are getting symptoms faster to test positive in a pcr or antigen test, so you have to take that into account if you have exposure or you wake up feeling under the weather.

and antigen test -- an test should be taken right before a potential gathering, right before you walk in to a gathering. ama: i always assumed if you had a sore throat and you take the test and it is negative it should be negative, but you may need to wait if you are having symptoms. >> you do. if you have a sore throat and you test negative you could also have influenza, so you should probably just stay home. ama: that is a good point. you are a pediatric expert. let's talk about the rising pediatric cases, hospitalizations of children are up 30% in just the past week. how concerned are you? >> i am concerned by the sheer number. it is reassuring to see evidence

that these omicron cases appear to be more mild than what we have seen in the past. when we have 100,000 positive tests week after week you inevitably will have more hospitalizations, more really six children at risk or or it on to somebody else to is higher risk. the big concern is the unknown, and how this is going to affect those who are most vulnerable, children not vaccinated, the elderly, people who are not vaccinated in general and young kids. the last thing we went to see ardmore shutdowns, or lockdowns. it is an important that we get a grip on this and protect our kids. ama: we have a week left before kids go back to school. what is your advice to parents?

>> no matter what i say parents are going to be concerned, because that is a parent's job. if your child is eligible for the vaccine there is no question at all you should get your child the shot. it will take a couple of weeks to kick in, but the vast majority, almost every single kid who was hospitalized and over 60% of those 12 to 17-year-olds hospitalized or in vaccinated. -- unvaccinated. kids who were under five, do everything you can to protect them. check it with your school, caretakers, daycare centers and look to see what their safety protocols are. ama: let's talk about for those of us who have kids who are not five yet, do you think the rise in pediatric cases will

incentivize the fda to speed up emergency use for the vaccine for kids under five? >> you almost answer the question with a second part of your question. the setback was disappointing because some parents were waiting to get those vaccines available for kids younger than five, that should build trust, because we are not planning on washing anything. -- rushing anything. in the meantime you have got to do what any parent is doing and protect them by having a conversation with everyone around them. my daughter is eight months old. the way we kept her safe

ensuring everyone around her was vaccinated. ama: that is what we did with the flu shot when we had a newborn. we had a lot of candidates who said i do not believe in the flu shot. let's talk about being boosted. new today san francisco has announced workers in health care and other high-risk settings must be boosted by february 1. do you agree with this move? >> i do agree with this move. several people have been saying that data is clear now that fully vaccinated actually should mean all three shots. we know all three shots together are providing the efficacy we need to push off this variant. it is important that we define that. this might give businesses to

regulate and mandate them, and that is important in a setting like health care where you are coming into contact with a lot of positive cases. ama: we have less than a minute before break, but the cdc but outnumbers showing the nation's shattered its covid case record. what does this indicate about omicron? >> this indicates the transmissibility and how contagious it is combined with the fact that people are getting complacent and getting up there. we have not shattered the hospitalization record or death record. case rates alone are not coupled to rising hospitalizations. we have not hit a hospitalization peak. this is going to become endemic, we will have to learn how to live with coronavirus, so it is important we look at case rates.

ama: endemic, that

ama: we are back with our special correspondent, and we went to start with another round of two truths and ally -- and a lie. >> which one of these is not true? the cdc reported more than 4500 cases of the flu last week, up from 2500 cases two weeks prior or test positivity is rising in san francisco and is directly

coupled with hospitalizations or two publican lawmakers have been fined for violating mask rules. ama: i think it is positivity is up but it sounds like a not as many people are being hospitalized. the cases of the true. viewers agree with me again but we were wrong last time. what is it? >> you were right this time. i will not pretend like we give it away. test positivity is rising in california, but that is one metric this could be by virtue of the fact that omicron is a more mild variant. we do not know what could happen with the unvaccinated get hit,

but it is good news to see it is not necessarily coupled. a is true, and it is important to remember influenza hospitalized is a lot of people. c, ridiculous, this is andrew clyde and marjorie taylor greene have been fined fined fined fif money. the cdc guidance for those who are unvaccinated say after five days of isolation if you test positive you should wear a mask. there is a bit of an honor system and people have to trust that the average individual is going to do the right thing. i am skeptical. ama: at this point it is hard to follow what the rules, recommendations, what you are supposed to be doing, it changes and now it is whether you are

vaccinated or unvaccinated and maybe you should be following the accident but you have a kid who is not vaccinated because they are too young, it is a lot to follow. >> i mentioned earlier i wish the cdc would have included a separate clause for people who are unvaccinated. a lot of experts are criticizing the cdc guidance and state there should be a clear recommendation about getting a negative test and there should be recommendations about which mask you should be wary -- wea the flip-flopping of information is giving people a hard time. ama: what kind of mask should we be wearing? >> i stand by people who say they are better than nothing but people should be wearing a n

k 95. a lot of members of the population do not want to wear a mask. they will say i do not want to wear a mask at all. this is common ground we are going to have to find, we cannot do this for a 30 year. -- third year. ama: let's talk about the holiday coming up, we are hearing about installations, san francisco has canceled fireworks for a second year in a row. do you think that is necessary? >> i have a hard time seeing why outdoor events are being canceled. i understand it is in abundance of caution. it is hard to see another celebration canceled but it is important that we put out a message that people should be careful. avoid a gathering if you cannot verify everyone is vaccinated.

it is hard to see outdoor celebrations scaled down. ama: we have 1.5 minutes left, there are experts saying next year could be the end of the pandemic or when it becomes endemic. explain the difference to people, and do you agree? >> simply put you do not see a lot of qualitative definitions about when we will transition and aside from daily infection tolls it comes down to whether or not the infection is controlled. are we still going to have an overburdened health care system? that is when we will transition. we are still seeing overrun hospitals and it is not just because of covid-19, it is because of moral injury and burnout in health care professional so that will be the last checkbox.

we've got vaccines, treatments and we will start to have more natural immunity. hopefully we can go back to living our normal lives soon. that is on the individual. if you want to see this virus turn into an endemic one, you will know what to do. ama: thank you so much for joining us, we appreciate your time, always a pleasure to chat with you, i am sure we will talk to you in eight day or two -- a day or two. >> let's hope 2020 two is a brighter

ama: we are just 2022 and the new year means new laws. we have a preview. ♪ reporter: every

are approved in the hopes of tackling problems we see here in california. here are some that will take effect in 2022 that might affect you. more private controlled fires will help clear overgrowth that helps fuel wildfires in california. a new bill reduces liability for burn boxes. on new year's day at the minimum wage increases to $15 across the golden state for businesses with 26 or more employees and $40 per hour with those -- for those with 25 or fewer workers. cities are given new authority to reduce speed limits. current limits are based on speeds drivers feel comfortable driving. hooray for cocktail hour, pandemic privileges have been

extended, but not fully. orders were mixed drinks can be placed online, by phone, or in person but must be picked up. delivery of cocktails december 31 where it good news for those waiting to see a therapist, insurance companies and health plans will be required to provide timely follow-up care and reduce wait times for patients seeking help for mental health. have a safe and happy new year. ama: a lot of people strive for new year's resolutions. how about being more mindful? one expert says that is key to the link a better routine. joining us is a stanfor professor and mindfulness expert. >> such a pleasure to be with you. ama: tell us what mindfulness

is? >> mindfulness was defined one of the founders of mindfulness. a defined mindfulness as awareness of the present moment on purpose nonjudgmentally. there are a few important pearls in their. -- in there. one of them is awareness of the present moment. another is we live with attention, if we default to the brains that we are wired we are not going to be very present, we will be stuck in the past and fixated on the future. the other is the idea of living without judgment, because our brains are always comparing and judging. we judge ourselves most negatively and harshly.

ama: how do we break that cycle? >> again, it is about being aware of what is happening in this moment right now. as our brains are wired to be stuck in the past and future, the good news is we have this quality called neural plasticity. with attention we can rewire our brains to be more present, less judgmental, and therefore happier. the method i teach stan's work gratitude, acceptance, attention, and nonjudgment, and i think these are the four pillars of mindfulness. ama: you have a book. if somebody wants to start mindfulness in the new year what is a little way they can do to get started?

>> first of all there all theree thing as failure, everything is in baby steps. our brain became wired over decades and we will not change that overnight. all we can hope for is taking baby steps. my recommendation is to start the day with gratitude. as i teach we start form of meditation, we sit in a comfortable place, we started to get in touch with our breath, we slow it down and we begin to complement -- contemplate that for which we are rightful. there are many elements for which to be grateful, so focusing on gratitude is key. ama: we have about 30 seconds. >> it is important to recognize that life is full of painful

moments as well as joy, so we need to accept those and if we can open our hearts and let that pain in and truly accepted, our suffering -- except it -- accept it our suffering will be diminished. we can drop a lot of the judgments that we make. ama: we do have to go to break but we will keep you on our livestream. if you are on tv we will

ama: thank you so much for joining us on this interactive show getting answers.

we will be here every weekday at 3:00. world news tonight is next breaking news as we come on the air. the jury reaching a verdict in the federal trial of ghislaine maxwell. the longtime associate of jeffrey epstein guilty of helping him sexually abuse teenage girls. the jury convicting her on five of six charges. the verdict coming on the sixth day of deliberations, after about 40 hours. jurors pouring over testimony from the victims. the judge telling everyone in the courtroom to remain quiet and calm as the verdict was revealed. reaction now coming in. today's other major headlines. the u.s. shattering its own record for daily covid cases. more than 277,000 new cases reported in 24 hours. three people infected every second, with the delta and omicron variants sweeping across the country. cases doubling in eight states

since last week