john torres weighs in. >>> with just 18 days to christmas, it's being called ship-ageddon >> caught on camera, a really life grinch busted in the act of stealing dozens of christmas trees but what happened afterwards is, well, just what the christmas season is all about. "early today" starts right now >>> good morning i'm valerie castro. >> glad you're starting your week with us i'm frances rivera the start of this week brings new hope the u.s. may soon see the approval of a coronavirus vaccine, but as the country anxiously waits, cases and deaths continue to climb as of today, there have been over 14.8 million infections, and over 283,000 deaths, according to an nbc news tally. >> the pandemic isn't stopping pope francis from spreading an uplifting message this holiday season at his sunday blessing, the pontiff said the christmas season provides a sign of hope in this difficult time his words come as most of california enters a new virus lockdown nbc's meagan fitzgerald has the latest. >> valerie, good morning millions of californians are waking up to some of the most restrictive meas

john torres. what exactly does more contagious mean in this case and how should we protect ourselves? >> lester, even though the new strain seems to be spreading faster in the uk especially in children we don't know if that's because of the strain itself or because people are interacting more before this latest lockdown but this just underlies the need to continue to wear masks, social distance and wash our hands. >> so will pfizer and moderna's vaccines protect against this new strain >> viruses constantly mutate but so far the changes researchers have seen in the coronavirus are smal enough that the vaccine should still work but the more it spreads the more it can mutate so the sooner we get this under control the better >> let's talk about choices. when it comes to the vaccines available, can you choose which one you get? >> doctors' offices will most likely have one type pharmacies may have more than one. cvs for example tells us they plan to offer both pfizer and moderna vaccines so people ge

john torres, nbc news, denver. >>> still ahead shall the fallout from a massive nor'easter and dancing under the stars. the dazzling new ways so many are the ups and downs of frequent mood swings can take you to deep, depressive lows. or, give you unusually high energy, even when depressed. overwhelmed by bipolar i? ask about vraylar. some medicines only treat the lows or highs. vraylar effectively treats depression, acute manic and mixed episodes of bipolar i in adults. full-spectrum relief for all bipolar i symptoms, with just one pill, once a day. elderly patients with dementia-related psychosis have an increased risk of death or stroke. call your doctor about unusual changes in behavior or suicidal thoughts. antidepressants can increase these in children and young adults. report fever, stiff muscles, or confusion, which may mean a life-threatening reaction, or uncontrollable muscle movements, which may be permanent. side effects may not appear for several weeks. high cholesterol and weight gain, high blood sugar, which can lead to coma or death, may occur. movement dysfunction, sle

john torres, richard engel. i want to start with you, richard. talk to me about what we're expecting to see and when. >> so it is bringing a lot of hope to people in this country as well. this is probably one of the most optimistic days they have i seen in the u.k. since the pandemic began. today the lock down that was imposed before the christmas holiday was lifted. bars and restaurants opened again, christmas shopping opening again, and the news came that starting early next week the rollout will begin. but then comes the hard part. the actual rollout. you described it as starting with the elderly homes, the care homes, and their staff, and moving down by age group. that is true nap is the general parameters. but we just listened to a national press conference by boris johnson, the prime minister, some of his top advisors, and they outline a very specific plan that involves different tiers, how batches can be distributed. how certain hospitals that have cold storage units will get prioritized first, and how that will then move on to different a

john torres dr. john, if the pfizer vaccine i approved here in the u.s. what should people do if they have a severe allergy >> lester, it's not unusual for a very small number of people to have this reaction to a vaccine, especially a new one that having been said, i wouldn't be surprised if the fda recommends waiting for anyone that has a severe allergic reaction to a food, medication or even a pet. that could be significant people who now have additional concerns so pfizer's hoping to quickly find out what triggered this and determine who should and more importantly who should not be getting this vaccine. lester >> all right thank you. >>> this vaccine can't come soon enough for hospitals facing the crush of patients and a surge of infections tied to the thanksgiving holiday miguel almaguer has the latest. >> reporter: the thanksgiving surge experts feared is now here and just beginning to cripple states like california. as hospitalizations spike more than 80 this medical center outside los angeles had to turn its lobby into a makeshift covid ward while

john torres now. dr. john, the cdc made a pretty important change shortening their guidance on how long people have to quarantine what do we know? >> lester, this virus is still just as serious and just as deadly but we learned more about how it spread, especially with someone not showing any symptoms if you have been exposed the cdc saying you can quarantine for ten days if you neve develop symptoms but you can shorten that time period with one key element, testing if you get a negative covid test you only need to quarantine for seven days but according to the new guidelines that test does need to be negative and done on day five of quarantine or later lester >> all right dr. john, thank you. >>> by next week people in the united kingdom will become the first in the western world to roll up their sleeves for mass inoculations against covid-19 richard engel reports from london. >> reporter: the potential turning point millions have been waiting for, with approval this morning people in the uk can start get

john torres. we heard reports rising cases, overwhelmed hospitals. knows coronavirus ranked number one cause of death in this country. what's your reaction to that, and how is it we are not slowing the spread yet? >> alex, one of those things when you look at it, very disheartening because number of cases are going up, number of hospitalizations going up and unfortunately deaths reaching record ledvels as well. dr. robert redfield with the cdc said expect a total 450,000 deaths by beginning february. around 280,000 right now. the thanksgiving weekend just came and start seeing peaks from those as well. holiday season is coming up. december holidays. the message has been going out to not travel but a lot of people will travel and gathering. those cases keep going up. those hospitalizations and deaths keep going up, and i think people are getting the message about masks and social distancing but that message does break down during these time periods and that's when we see increase in cases, alex. we've been in it ten-plus months and want to be through

john torres is with us now. john, some hope here but also some real challenges >> lester, today's cdc meeting highlighted some of the issues that will come up as covid vaccines begin to roll out. beginning with over 300,000 health care workers who are pregnant or recently postpartum these initial vaccines have not been tested on pregnant or breast-feeding mothers. so they wouldn't be able to get the vaccine in this first phase. but you also have to consider adverse reactions. and since large numbers of doctors and nurses are getting vaccinated in the initial round, even minor side effects like low-grade fevers or soreness could cause staffing shortages. so they suggest hospitals stagger their own vaccination schedules to avoid the potential of a large number of staff calling out sick at the same time. and lester, until further testing is done it's still unclear if the vaccine is safe for children >> all right, john, thanks very much >>> some late developments on the election today attorney general bill barr said

john torres. thank you so much.first of all, facing are facing a real challenge, who to put in first in line after this first phase of frontline health care workers. twho goes next, other frontline workers, the meat packers, the teachers, the firefighters, the seniors? you know, these are ethical questions, but they're very practical questions. >> these are ethical and they are practical questions. this is one thing medicine is very good at is doing a triage, saying who are the ones that need it the most? let's get et to them and let's eventually get it to people who might not need it as much, but who are going to need it. the cdc came identity with their recommendations on how you face individuals. that was front line health care workers and other states are saying, we understand that. but we might have 900 shots and 2,000 people that need them. what are we going to do here? some hospitals are saying, let's have a lottery system and do it that way. here in colorado where i live, they're doing a system set up where

john torres. morgan, first to you, i think you may have said there's a lunch break or they've taken a lunch break. what have we heard so far from the panel today? >> reporter: andrea, that panel just came back from their lunch break moments ago and they've been meeting since 9:00 a.m. virtually. basically what they've been doing is going over all of the data that pfizer has provided them about the efficacy of their vaccine. and today, between 3:15 and 5:15 when that virtual meeting ends, that's when we expect them to make their vote, to vote whether or not to recommend emergency use of the pfizer vaccine to the fda. and andrea, the fda could vote to approve that as early as tomorrow. and once that is approved, that means millions of doses of this vaccine will go to every corner of the country within days. and there's already a very elaborate distribution plan in place. it's a military-led effort that will be partnered with ups on the east coast, fedex on the west coast. and they will take those bo

john torres is here with us once again to answer some of your questions about the vaccine. dr. john, our first question from claudine in california who wants to know if someone is vaccinated can they still pass the virus on if they're exposed? >> lester, studies show the vaccines are about 95% effective and while that should prevent most people from catching and spreading the virus it is not 100% so there's still a chance to be infected and spread it so continue to wear a mask and social distance even after you have been vaccinated. >> next one from ann in new york who wants the know, are there concerns if you have underlying health conditions >> the pfizer vaccine was tested on volunteers of different ages and races as well as people with underlying conditions including high blood pressure, diabetes and obesity researchers found it was just as effective and safe for everyone. >> and finally, should i get the vaccine if i've already had covid? i know there's been a lot of discussion about this >> right now there are no official recommendations but most experts say it's a good id

john torres is here to try to answer some of them in tonight's "facts over fear." and dr. john, our first question comes from abby gould levine from denver, colorado who wants to ask what are the known side effects of the vaccine? >> in human trials the pfizer vaccine was generally well tolerated by volunteers that received it. many did complain about minor side effects like an injection site reaction, fatigue and headaches and a few complained about muscle aches but these side effects usually only lasted about a day and a half and they're typical of what you might experience from many other vaccines >> our next question comes from gloria williams in winston-salem, north carolina who asks, what happens if you don't get the second shot >> the data just released by the fda on the pfizer vaccine shows that after the first shot you do get some protection from the virus, but only about half of what you would get with both doses. and we aren't sure how long protection from just one shot will actually last. >> and finally, will the vaccine be free for anyone who wants it >> the cd

john torres joins us now dr. torres, the cdc just voted on recommendations to the new vaccine including advice for pregnant women. >> jose, studies weren't done on pregnant or breast-feeding women so we don't have data on how safe or effective the vaccine is for them. but today the cdc recommended that if a pregnant woman is part of a group who's recommended to get the vaccine like a health care worker she may choose to be vaccinated but should talk with her doctor to make an informed decision the cdc also recommended the vaccine even for someone who's already had covid although they could wait 90 days after getting the disease to get the shot since in those three months it's unlikely they'll get reinfected with the virus. >> and dr. torres, the cdc is now saying exactly how far apart these two shots need to be. >> jose, you need two doses of the pfizer vaccine to get the full protection it offers and today the cdc recommended you get the second dose 17 to 21 days after getting that initial shot. but realizing th

john torres is here with some important information. dr. torres, great to see you. right in because we do have a lot of questions. so the first one comes from 90-year-old george and 75-year-old suzanne of maryland. they ask how will we know we are eligible for the vaccine? does our primary care physician call us or do we call them? what's the answer here? >> kristen, good morning. these questions are always fantastic and this is one i'm getting a lot of. people want to know when they're eligible for it. the cdc came out with their criteria but that could vary state by state. the cdc is saying in the first wave health care workers, essential workers. those at high risk, including those in long-term care facilities. then they're going to work down the list to those 65 and older. some states are varying that, shuffling that around a little bit. but the main thing is you're going to find out information from your doctor's office and clinics, hospitals. they're going to start texting and calling people, letting them know when their patients are eligible. you'll also see

john torres. let's focus on the vaccine, you're in rural minnesota, a lot of concern about how rural communities will be able to handle this vaccine with the freezer needs. you have been reporting on much of that. walk us through what you're seeing today. >> katy, this is the first day of vaccinations in hospitals in minnesota and here at stanfo stanford-worthington we're about to witness the first shot. if many viewers it doesn't get old after we have seen so many tragic images on tv lately. this is a little bit of hope. this is a small community of about 13,000 people and it means a lot to them. so with that i want to bring you into this special moment here. this is lynn who is vaccinating dr. jenna wolf. she is a specialist here and she has been on the front lines taking on. >> this is several for us. not only as a health care system and a hospital, but for our community. like we said the coronavirus really hit us hard here in worthington, southern minnesota, and we have seen that in our friend

john torres, nbc news. >> they all said yes. >> they all said yes said the reader, fapping shock.an you believe that? doctors have concluded their own children should go to school. they must be crazy. what do doctors know about coronavirus? what was this about? and of course you know the answer. it was about donald trump. donald trump in this case agreed with the doctors, therefore, the doctors had to be mocked and ignored. here's what the president said about schools in july. >> we have to open our schools. open our schools. stop this nonsense. we open our schools. [applause] >> tucker: stop this nonsense. we reopen our schools. now, in points of fact, as a scientific matter, that turned out to be sound policy based on sound data. but the media told us the exact opposite of that one headline at cnn warned of, quote: the very clear dangers of donald trump's push to reopen schools. google didn't censor that as misinformation. it should have. another headline called out, quote: donald trump's mind bending logic on school reopening. mind bending logic. those damn data again. joe bide

john torres, spent months following a colorado health department working to build trust. >> once the covid vaccine the -- denver's public, we have been following the progress since september. who are the people you are hoping to reach? >> people that don't usually access health services or go to retail pharmacies, we are think ing -- minorities distrust the medical community. perfect. the doctor and her team mapped out the city's covid hot spots and spent months building relationships by bring iing flu vaccines in to the area. >> the team created partnerships with local leaders and on social media, bringing pop up clinics to shelters and community centers and food banks and even fire houses. for leslie williams, convenience was key. >> it was super easy and we continue to make sure that we have the resources in the community. >> we just checked back in with the team. >> how did it go? >> we have given over 3300 vaccines and mainly flu vaccines. >> what they learned is host clinics when people are home from work and school, sprad the messages in many languages, mare the same health te

john torres. great to have you with us. a very critical hour in this process. we'll keep an eye on that vote if it does get underway in this program. this meeting expected to go on at least until 5:00 tonight. what is the panel specifically looking at? and can we tell which way they are leaning so far? >> this is a very important panel. it is an advisory panel filled with independent experts. they're not employed by the fda. they're not beholden to the fda and the fda uses them in an id capacity to give information on questions they might have over something like this. the sxraks related biological products advisory committee. they'll look at all the raw data and look at the information to find out, dig down and find out specifics or any nuances based on race, age, gender, anything that might affect the vaccine. the fda has looked at the data and they'll come with questions that they can hopefully answer. they'll recommend thumbs up or thumbs down west expect them to recommend it. then the fda will take that on advisement. they don't always have to follow them

joining me now, nbc medical news correspondent john torres, and nbc news foreign correspondent molly hunter in london. let's start with you, dr. torres, about that new variant. we're lagging far behind in genomic sequencing to identify the varying viruses. only 50,000 so far, experts say, have been even checked to identify that in the u.s. the uk far ahead of us, other countries even more far ahead than the uk. why are we, who defended genomic sequencing, so far behind in looking for these mutations? >> they think this variant came out 35 miles that way, a little town of about 20,000 people in an assisted living center that has about 25 residents. the case that's confirmed was a person working there, a 20-year-old. there is a suspected case they think was working there as well. and what that tells me is that this is an assisted living center, so these people do not frequently go out very much and they certainly don't travel to other countries. and so that means that somewhere in the community, that virus came into the community, that variant of the virus, which means it came from ano

john torres weighs in. >>> with just 18 days to christmas, it's being called ship-ageddon >> caught onchristmas trees but what hpe

john torres to talk about these efforts and what can be done to speed up the progress at this point should we do what the uk is going to be doing with the next vaccine and start at least trying to get the first dose to more people instead of worrying about the double dose right away >> and right now at this point, a lot of experts are saying, we shouldn't be doing that mainly because we don't know how much protection that first dose gave you. pfizer said, we think it's around 52% and seemed to last 22 days but we didn't study beyond that we do know the double dose gives you 95% protection and that can last well into a couple of months at this point, giving two people two shots because we're giving them to the most vulnerable and those moek likely to catch covid is a first step. other countries are doing mass vaccination events across the country, which we're not doing here yet i think we're going to get to that point and i think you'll see it in january or mid-january or late january. so, you're getting it distributed is one thing but getting shots in arms is that one step we need to make

john torres, and good morning to you and seeing you on this holiday week. thank you for being here. and the fact that the advisory committee said that we should limit the alcoholic beverages to limit to one for men and one for women or not to drink alcohol at all. and then also for the first time they've addressed nutritional requirements for babies and toddlers, those under the age of 2, which i think a lot of parents will be welcoming this information. >> dr. john, based on this new information for folks who like to enjoy a sweet treat from time to time, what's the guidance >> the guidance here is to have healthy dietary patterns in other words, have healthy habits when it comes to the diet, so don't look at one thing that you might indulge every now and then but look across the spectrum of the days across a basis and look across to what is nutrient dense foods which is the foods that you get more bang for the buck, and more nutrients and minerals and vitamins in the foods, themselves, but they said it is okay to indulge once in a while, and if you get a cake once in a while, fine

john torres and vicky nguyen here to answer the top questions on google. guys, good morning dr.'s a basic one, "is the covid vaccine safe?" >> you know, i think this is the big question not just for everybody around the country, but for the fda, as well dr. steve hahn, the commissioner of the fda, personally told me they wouldn't authorize this vaccine unless it was found to be safe and effective. so far by all of the data and the trials that we have, it has shown to be a really good safety profile and good and safe vaccine. we know there might be minor side effects, but overall, seems to be a very safe vaccine. >> that was the next top googled question, what about side effects? >> so the side effects have been minor. they had no significant side effects. the ones they did see are ones that are typical with most vaccines injection site soreness or redness in the arm, maybe a little lump where you get the shot, fatigue, headaches those were the ones the majority of people. had some had muscle aches, but everyone said it went away in a day and a half it went through very, very qui

jon torres, dr. john haseltine, thank you to your both and happy new year's. dr.ci will join andrea mitchell to talk about the latest on the vaccine rollout later today. that is at noon eastern right here on msnbc. you do not want to miss that conversation ahead of the new year. >>> coming up, everybody, as congress fights over getting americans more relief, we've just gotten the final unemployment numbers of 2020. that conversation is next. laund, but they all do it a little different. honestly, i add a couple of tide pods and just stuff everything in. it works. and of course, everyone thinks their way is right. i stood in line for hours to get this. it has to be washed on delicate. it has to be cold water, it's better for the planet. the secret is, with tide pods it all works. of course it does. told ya! they're going to do it their way, and i get a break from the laundry. no matter how you wash, it's got to be tide. you can do better, steve! get a freshly made footlong, from subway®! you can even order on the subway® app! did i just get picked off by deion sand