joining the ceo of robert wood johnson foundation and former acting director of the cdc doctor richard besseru for coming on the show, before we get to the vaccine i want to get one thing out of the way you said often that putting health against the economy is a false eye caught me, can your claim that. >> when you think about when it takes to get the economy up in a sustained fashion, you will get that with the pandemic under control. the roadmap to sustain economic recovery is following the guidance of public health in getting this under control so we can get people back to work. jack: sometimes they align really nicely like when pfizer announced good results in its trials the market rallied, what was your reaction to pfizer's announcement, i would have is a cautious optimism. optimism because at no expectation that results would come in with the protection level of 90% or higher, that is incredible and the protection you get from a measles vaccine, one of the best that we have. caution because this is company reported information and has not been validated by independent scientists and it'

richard besser, thank you so much for joining us again. for months we have been hearing these warnings, don't travel, be careful, this pandemic is getting worse, but people appear to be planning to travel, to gather in large groups over thanksgiving. major warnings today from the c.d.c. and other federal encies. how worried are you that people are just not listening? >> judy, i'm extreme worried. this is a worst case scenario. we have the holidays here at a time when respiratory viruses thrive. they love colweather and low humidity. we have a nation that has not come togher around what needs to be done to control this. you know, it's clear tha our personal actions -- wearing masks, keeping apart from each other, washia our hnds -- has a big impact, but it's also clear that people need rsources from congress in order to be able to protect themselves,fa theiilies and their communities. you know, as your reporter was owing, this pandemic is having disparate impact on communities of color, hitting them at fos ti more of the rates of white comm

richard besser was on "good morning america" today.he vaccine news is encouraging but the american people need to do more to help. >> and i worry, robin, if we don't change what we're doing, we're going to be having a conversation before the end of the year about 300,000 people. >> you think that we will reach that by the end of the year in just a matter of six weeks or so, rich? you believe that? >> we're losing more than a thousand people a day and the numbers are rising. >> those are stunning numbers. coming up on "gma," dr. besser reveals why he thinks schools in new york city should be open despite surging cases in the city. kumasi? >> thank you. >>> today vice president mike pence will lead a white house coronavirus task force meeting. this comes as president-elect joe biden and kamala harris meet with several governors to discuss improving coordination between the federal government and state agencies. these meetings come as an arizona judge says he will rule on a case this morning that could delay arizona's certification of bal

richard besser, always grateful for your time and expertise, see you down the road. >> thanks for havingith you. >>> up next, final jeopardy with host alex trebek, how he inspired the next generation. >> announcer: abc news "nightline," sponsored by i robot. experience clean in a whole new way. now roomba offers you personalized cleaning suggestions and vacuums exactly where you need it. by getting to know you and your home, roomba makes cleaning easier than ever before. so say goodbye to cleaning and hello to clean. hey google, tell roomba to vacuum the dining room table. roomba and the irobot home app. only from irobot. but some things are too serious to be ignored. if you still have symptoms of crohn's disease or ulcerative colitis even after trying other medications, it may be a sign of damaging inflammation, which left untreated, could get much worse. please make an appointment to see your gastroenterologist right away. or connect with them online. once you do, seeing the doctor is one less thing to worry about. need help finding a doctor? head to crohnsandcolitis.com need help find

richard besser former cdc acting director and with abc for a long time. dr. besser, great to see you. thanksgiving coming up real quick. we've been told over and over again not to gather with groups outside of our home. however we just saw that 3 million people traveled by air over the weekend to get some place. so, whautt is the last-minute advice you would give to these families? >> it's a challenging time. everyone is absolutely sick of this pandemic and thanksgiving is one of our favorite holidays. if your plans aren't set, if people haven't taken off to come to your house, i still urge you to follow cdc's advice and not have the big thanksgiving gathering this year. we normally have 20 to 30 people at our house. this year we have three coming. my wife, me and one son who was able to get tested. but my parents who live two miles from us, they're both 90, we're going to deliver them some food, but we're not getting together. it's just too risky. when i see the news aboutthe vaccines tha are coming it gives me excitement and also gives me fear because i'm ju

richard besser a former acting director of the cdc. >>> okay.der that tomorrow the trump administration in republican-led states will argue to gut the affordable care act at the supreme court, advocating to kick 20 million people off their insurance. at the same time, the trump administration is using an obscure part of the federal government to prevent joe biden and his transition team from being able to get to work. it's not like they have a huge mess to clean up or anything. i'll talk about that when we come back. we come back. before voltaren arthritis pain gel, my husband would have been on the sidelines. but not anymore! an alternative to pills voltaren is the first full prescription strength non-steroidal anti-inflammatory gel to target pain directly at the source for powerful arthritis pain relief. voltaren. the joy of movement. i'm a talking dog. the other issue. oh...i'm scratching like crazy. you've got some allergic itch with skin inflammation. apoquel can work on that itch in as little as 4 hours, whether it's a new or chronic probl

richard besser and new york governor andrew cuomo join us live. >>> defiant. to concede defeat saying the election is far from over and vowing to take the results to court with 72 days until the inauguration.

richard besser. always good to have you on. >> thanks, jim. >> if you can look for a moment at this decision in new york because the data has not borne out that schools are a super spreader in effect as children go back. was this decision necessary to close schools in new york in your view? >> well, you know, jim, i was one of those people early on very concerned that opening schools might lead to transmission within the school and within the community. i was really pleased with how things were going in new york city. it demonstrated that in the nation's largest school system you could safely bring children into school, safe for the children, safe for the staff and safe for the teachers. but i think the city tied their hands when they were linked to that 3% community positivity rate because they hit that, but they hit that and at the same time they've been able to maintain a safe environment in the schools. i was talking to a state health commissioner in another state and she was making the point tha

richard besser is a former acting director of the cdc. okay, a reminder that tomorrow the trump administration and republican-led states will argue to gut the affordable care act at the supreme court, advocating to kick 20 million people off their insurance. at the time, the trump administration is using an obscure part of the federal government to prevent joe biden and his transition team from being able to get to work. it's not like they have a huge mess to clean up or anything. i'll talk about that when we come back. r anything i'll talk about that when we come back. from actual insurance companies. funny thing about health insurance, you don't think about how much you need it... until you need it. he's not going to be okay. with so many changes to health insurance plans, are you still sure you have the right fit? having the wrong fit can cost you thousands. new plans are available that can save you money. that's why i love healthmarkets, your insurance marketplace. they guarantee you won't find a lower price anywhere for the plans the

richard besser, former director of the cdc. dr.esser, i think viewers would be forgiven to have covid whiplash right now. two days ago, the euphoria there was with the news from pfizer, you know, it was the first time, frankly, that my own kids thought they saw light. i mean this spread like wildfire. it finally -- my daughter is a junior in high school. she's going i might have a senior year now. and so here we saw some flickers of light at the tunnel over there. and yet we're experiencing the worst part of this pandemic yet. and it feels as if certainly our political leadership is not anywhere near having the sense of urgency that i think we could be using right now. >> yeah, i mean, chuck, this is a very dangerous situation and we're not seeing the appropriate response from our political leadership. the news of two days ago, yes, that should give people a glimmer of hope. but what worries me is that it gives people false hope in terms of this winter. as we've been saying for months and months and months, respiratory viruses thri

richard besser, former acting cdc director.sponding to all of this. he will give us an economic blueprint of what he's looking at as he takes office next january. he might be responding to these latest covid-19 crackdowns as well. stay with us. businesses today are looking to tomorrow. adapting. innovating. setting the course. but new ways of working demand a new type of network. one that's more than just fast. you need flexibility- to work from anywhere. and manage from everywhere. advanced technology. with serious security. and reliable coverage, nationwide. forward-thinking enterprises, deserve forward-thinking solutions. and that's what we deliver. so bounce forward, with comcast business. neil: you know, when i was a kid i can remember what if they made a taxi or vehicle that could fly over the traffic, if only i had put money behind my brilliant idea, because they actually are coming up with that. in orlando it's a lot closer than you think. ashley webster following all of that. what's going on here? ashley: yes, followin

richard besser. thank you for joining us today. where are we right no in terms of this virus. >> the maps that you show that are getting to be read in just about every state tell a very scary picture. this is the most dangerous period we have yet seen in this pandemic. if you think back to the spring with hospitals overwhelmed in isolated places. imagine what that will be like when you have hospitals overwhelmed. when the is impossible to see them moving between states to try to provide some of the support. we know the way forward. we know what needs to be done to get this under control. there are things we need to do as individuals. we're tired of it but we need to wear masks, keep apart, wash our hands. but if you don't put money in people's pockets, then you can't expect them to do the things that need to be done which includes stay home if you are sick. how will someone do that if they're having to choose between going to work so they can president food on the table or staying home so they can help prevent spread the infection.

richard besser, former acting head of the cdc, he spoke out this morning and he said he thinks the decision was the wrong way to go as it was -- as it was laid out. let me play for you his thinking. >> i think the city tied their hands when they were linked to that 3% community positivity rate, because they hit that. but they hit that and at the same time they've been able to maintain a safe environment in the schools. i was talking to a state health commissioner in another state and he was making the point that for a lot of children, being in the classroom where their mask wearing can be observed, social distancing can be monitored is really the safest place for them. >> so should the city be reconsidering this decision right now? >> i think we should be prioritizing reopening for elementary school students and students with special needs because we know there's a costs to online learning. and, in fact, there are 60,000 kids in new york city that don't have a connected device. so i'm not sure how this is going to work for them. i guess they'll have paper handouts. we have got to figure thi

richard besser, the former acting director of the cdc, also the president and ceo of the robert woodohnson foundation. good morning to you. given how dire the situation is now, worse than even the worst that we had in the spring, michael osterholm of course a leading voice on this out of the university of minnesota he has said that we really should be considering once again a statewide six to eight-week lockdown. i get that that's controversial and he has laid out with the minnesota federal reserve chairman why it doesn't have to cripple the economy, that it can help the economy in the long run. my question to you is can you do that effectively if every state doesn't do it? >> you know, this is a very dangerous situation and what we do right now across the nation, what we do in each state will determine who lives and lies this winter. a vaccine will not be what comes to the rescue this winter. the question about statewide or citywide or national lockdowns is really controversial. i think we've learned a lot over the past ten months about what activities are the most dangerous and wha

richard besser is here with how soon it could help. >>> transition turmoil. president-elect joe biden now warning that his administration could be dangerously delayed on rolling out the vaccine if they don't get cooperation from president trump. >> if it's not available soon we'll be behind. >> this, as president trump remains silent about the alarming surge in covid cases as he pursues false claims on voter fraud. >>> thanksgiving crackdowns. the states now ordering families not to gather in large groups for the holidays. the furious backlash and the big question, how will police enforce the rules? >>> plus, the couple behind that superspreader wedding speaking out. nearly half their guests infected with covid including three of their grandparents. why they are blaming the dance floor. >>> prince william breaks his silence about the investigation into that infamous interview with his mother, princess diana. was she tricked? >>> and the blockbuster news out of hollywood. >> get used to it. >> now how hollywood is planning to lasso in audiences. the highly ant

richard besser the former acting director at the centers for disease control and prevention. dr.ser, thank you so much for joining us. unfortunately, it seems like every time you and i talk the country is in worse shape as far as the virus is concerned. listen to this. in just the first ten days of november more than a million -- let me repeat that. more than a million americans have been infected with the virus. and that's before anyone starts getting together for the upcoming holidays. this is the equivalent of a five-alarm fire in the u.s. that all of us are facing right now, isn't it? >> i mean, this is a very dangerous situation, wolf. the idea that that many people have gotten sick this month and that the numbers are going to increase and what we're seeing at the highest levels of government is basically tossing it in, putting their hands up, we give up on this. there are steps that can be taken, and it's good to see in your reporting how many states are stepping up and mandating masks, telling people that it works. you know, the information that came out from cdc today abo

richard besser and new york governor andrew cuomo join us live. >>> defiant. president trump refuses to concede defeat saying the election is far from over and vowing to take the results to court with 72 days until the inauguration. >>> shattering the glass ceiling. >> while i may be the first woman in this office, i will not be the last. >> kamala harris taking her place in history, the vice president-elect of the united states. this morning, some who know her best, her howard university classmates and sorority sisters. that's right, aka, join us live. >>> happening now. tropical storm eta on the move making landfall in the florida keys. the record-breaking 12th named storm in the u.s. this year, ginger is tracking the path this morning. >>> here he is, the host of "jeopardy," alex trebek. >> celebrating alex trebek, the beloved "jeopardy" host who came into our homes every night for nearly four decades. passing away after his public and valiant battle with pancreatic cancer. tributes continue to pour in from all around the world. how he told us he wanted to

richard besser, and former acting director of the cdc. doctor, thank you so much for being here.ponse when you hear that time schedule for the vaccine? >> well, you know, i'm excited about the news, the early news from pfizer about their vaccine. but it's early news, and we need to have the data verified by independent scientists and data further out. this was looking at how effective the vaccines were seven days after your second dose. they will next look and see how effective or they 28 days after and then delete another month of safety data. assuming all of that goes well and there is a vaccine, it's exciting to think that there will be vaccine for folks in nursing homes, but for the general public, you know, for this winter, we cannot expect vaccines to have an impact. the numbers that you were just citing rising around the country really call on us to step up and do what we can to reduce transmission to ourselves, our families, and our communities. and the good news out of the cdc today was that the evidence is now showing that masks not only protect other people from you sp

richard besser, the former head for the centers for disease control was on "good morning america" today. he says the vaccine news is encouraging but the american people need to do more to help. >> and i worry, robin, if we don't change what we're doing, we're going to be having a conversation before the end of the year about 300,000 people. >> you think that we will reach that by the end of the year in just a matter of six weeks or so, rich? you believe that? >> we're losing more than a thousand people a day and the numbers are rising. >> coming up dr. besser reveals why he feels schools in new york city should be open despite surging cases in the city. >>> today vice president pence will lead a white house coronavirus task force meeting. this comes as the president's legal team continues to launch hail mary challenges in several battleground states. as elizabeth schulze tells us they're running out of time and options. >> president trump's chances to challenge the election appear to be dwindling by the hour. a judge in arizona says he'll rule on a case this morning that could delay the

richard besser chief medical correspondent from abc news and his team serving at the cdc. he had to say about when we could all get the >> in all likelihood, it will be late spring, early summer. but there's still a lot of things in play. none of these vaccines have been approved yet by fda. some of them are really challenging in terms of what is required to distribute them. and i think there's going to be far more vaccines than we currently see by the time the late winter comes along. >> now, he said with the winter looming that we really need to understand that things are going to close and reopen again as the state dials up or dials down what's available depending on case numbers. dr. besser also called on congress to work on another coronavirus relief package especially to help communities that have been disproportionately affected by the virus. >>> abc7 news assembled a team to bring you the latest vaccine news that includes dr. patel and kate larsen and luz pena and kumasi and michael finney. complete coverage and answer critical coverage about the vaccine as we get

richard besser president and ceo of robert johnson foundation and former acting director of the cdc.ou for coming back tonight. if you could explain to everybody in a very civilian way what messenger rna is and why it sort of allows you to get to not start from square one but from something farther along square one in order to teach how these cells how to fight off things? >> yeah, this is -- it's really fascinating, martha. it's a new technology for making vaccines. and as you said it's gene-based. so, the normal way of making a vaccine is you find a way to present to your immune system a protein, something that's on the outside of a virus or a bacteria so your immune system can react to that and so when you see the actual virus or bacteria you're protected. have you created antibodies and other protection. this works differently. it injects knew a good evening based material that causes your own cells to make a protein that's normally found on the outside of the coronavirus. it's called a spike protein. and so this gene based material goes into your own cells make this spike protei

richard besser and a member of president-elect biden's covid board, dr. michael osterholm.her loss is more nuanced than the fear of socialism. she'll join the conversation. "morning joe," just moments away. "morning joe," just moments away dry, distressed skin that struggles? new aveeno® restorative skin therapy. with our highest concentration of prebiotic oat intensely moisturizes over time to improve skin's resilience. aveeno® healthy. it's our nature™. sprinting past every leak in our softest, smoothest fabric. she's confident, protected, her strength respected. depend. the only thing stronger than us, is you. (burke)stomer)d. happy anniversary. (customer) for what? (burke) every year you're with us, you get fifty dollars toward your home deductible. it's a policy perk for being a farmers customer. (customer) do i have to do anything? (burke) nothing. (customer) nothing? (burke) nothing. (customer) nothing? (burke) nothing. (customer) hmm, that is really something. (burke) you get a whole lot of something with farmers policy perks. see ya. (kid) may i have a balloon, too

richard besser. he's a former acting director of the cdc. dr. besser, good to see you here. thank you for being with us, sir. i love this news. it is -- it is -- there's no question this is fantastic news. there are some specifics we have to understand. first of all, 90% efficacy is pretty good. people think all vaccines are effective against all things, but they're not. bill gates a few months ago said he was looking for a combination of vaccines that would together get us to about 95% efficacy. to have one vaccine with 90% efficacy is a very big deal. >> yeah. you know, ali, i always like to wait for independent scientists to verify the data. this is company data and an announcement. but if this holds up, a 90% effective vaccine is a game-changer. this is on the order of the kind of protection you get from measles vaccines and measles vaccines are extremely effective at controlling disease. there are a number of hurdles to pass. this was data based on seven days following the second dose of vaccine. so they'll be looking again to see how well it protects people 28 days aft

richard besser, it's always great to have your point of view on the show.>> still ahead, with little hope of overturning joe biden's victory, president trump and his allies like rudy giuliani are changing strategies. instead of trying to disqualify votes, their new plan appears to be to sow doubt. "morning joe" is back in one minute. gaps and wrap hair. so shark replaced them with flexible power fins to directly engage floors and dig deep into carpets. pick up more on every pass with no hair wrap. shark vertex with duoclean power fins. pizza. tacos. pizza! what about subway? it's a good call and everyone loves it. we raised our kids on it. so it stopped the bickering? (mocking tone) "mom, jj's copying me!" grow up. mom! knock it off! try the new subway buffalo chicken or bbq chicken. >>> mr. meadows, do you have any examples of voter fraud? are you looking into examples of voter fraud in states that he won? >> we've got a whole team looking at things, so i can't really speak to that. >> he can't really speak to it. white house chief of staff mark meadows af

richard besser.tor, we were warned early in this pandemic that the fall was going to be difficult. how bad are things on the ground right now when you look at all of the numbers? >> you know, when you look across the country, we are in a really dangerous situation and for many reasons. we predicted that the numbers would go up. viruses do very well in the winter thanks survive longer. they hang in the air longer. we can't spend as much time outdoors. but you have on top of that people being tired. people being tired of having to socially isolate and wear masks. other people who have run out of money. you know, the support that congress gave people back in the spring is long gone and so you have a situation where people aren't practicing the protective behaviors that they need to and you have millions of people who have to be in the economy to put food on the table and to pay rent. congress has not stepped up and put in place the mortgage foreclosure protection, the eviction protection, they haven't e

richard be besser. dr. besser, i want to get your reaction to what we are learning, this new data coming out from moderna this morning and the fact that they'll be filing today. >> kate, i think it's really exciting that moderna is filing for emergency use approval from the fda. it's exciting that their announcement includes data that their vaccine was very effective at preventing serious covid infections. i'm going to be watching the fda hearings very closely. and it's going to be really important that there's transparency around that because if you look at the polling data, there's a lot of concern out there, a lot of mistrust about how the vaccines are moving, whether they're moving too quickly and i'll want the independent scientific committee to the fda to look at the data and weigh in from their perspective, do they think it's safe, effective, something people should be receiving. and at that point, if they say yes, on that, then i will be incredibly excited about this vaccine. >> and your opinion on