rochelle walensky just said about masks in schools. the battle over masks tonight, as some governors say the mandates will go away, leaving it up to schools. tonight, parents in suburban chicago protesting over schools keeping the masks, after new jersey, delaware, oregon, connecticut are now moving to lift the mandates in schools in the coming weeks. when will we hear from new york's governor on masks? and tonight, what the cdc director just said. we'll have latest. >>> also tonight, the security scare involving the second gentleman. vice president kamala harris's husband doug emhoff evacuated from a school during a black history month event. tonight, new reporting on the threat. >>> this evening, the truck drivers protesting covid restrictions in canada and the scene on the u.s. border. blocking the ambassador bridge in detroit. the busiest border crossing between the u.s. and canada. tonight, the truckers who are not taking part, but who are stuck in this and their frustrations now mounting. >>> tonight, news on russia and ukraine.

rochelle walensky is now saying tonight. and just in here, what dr. fauci just told us about what he sees coming next. and tonight here, parents fed up with schools in this pandemic. in san francisco, a liberal city, parents and the three school board members who have been forced out tonight. some parents arguing they spent more time on other issues including renaming schools than on getting children back into the classroom. >>> tonight, bob saget, the medical examiner saying he died of blunt head trauma. likely from that fall. well tonight, the family of the actor fighting to keep the rest of the investigation private. and what a judge has decided for now. >>> tonight, the new questions after video of police officers breaking up a mall fight. some asking why one teenager was handcuffed and held face down while the other appears to be left alone, sitting on a couch. the governor tonight saying the appearance of what is racially disparate treatment is deeply, deeply disturbing. >>> the frightening collision between a car and a passenger train. the driv

>> good evening will today cdc director rochelle walensky acknowledge that states do have the flexibility to decide what's best for them locally and also in their schools. but she says the federal government is still recommending people mask-up, especially in areas with high transmission. and she says that the situation that still applies to much of the country. >> we're not there yet. cdc director rochelle walensky says the biden administration is not ready to reverse its public health guidance on masks despite a wave of blue states. now changing course. our hospitalizations are still high are death rates are still highs right now. illinois and new york are planning to end their mask mandates and doors and new jersey, massachusetts and virginia are going furt announcing plans to end mask mandates in schools. we certainly understand the need and desire to be flexible. well, lindsay says despite those changes, federal data is still under review and we will clearly communicate those recommendations to the public if and when they are updated wednesday, massachusetts democratic senator elizab

rochelle walensky says this country is not prepared to lift its mask mandates yeah. says the guidance has not changed and the cdc continues to recommend masking indoors. reggie: a suspect charged with murder in a deadly shooting on interstate 880 do in an oakland court room this morning. investigators say road rage was likely the motive for the 25-year-old come along garcia, killing jean ransom, a former cow basketball star. drew: and number five, record warmth is possible today. we all are going into the 70's today. 74 oakland, 74 in the city, 75 san jose, sanofi d8 -- 78 santa rosa. jobina: traffic is recovering from an earlier start near the fremont street offramp. kumasi: number seven, forget about drew's friend, punxsutawney phil, we have a black bear at lake tahoe. this bear is saying spring is here. [laughter] the bear known as b 33 was recently caught on camera coming out of his den, stretching its legs for the first time since winter started. this is what i like to see. drew: he's right. spring is here. reggie: b 33 is big. [laughter] jobina: i was going to

rochelle walensky said they are en cumped c.d.c. director dr. said they're encouraged by the current trends but we're not there yet. we have a lot of news to get to you, and cbs' mola lenghi is going to start us off tonight from new york city. good evening, mola. >> reporter: good evening, norah. as the pandemic drags on, there are signs of hope tonight that things are getting better. but americans are frustrated. 46% of those recently polled said it is time to get back to normal. as covid fatigue continues, dr. anthony fauci is sounding optimistic, telling the "financial times," we are heading out of the full-blown pandemic phase of covid-19." this as more states are easing indoor mask mandates. today, new york, massachusetts, rhode island, and illinois all announcing changes, joining five other state that announced rollbacks this week. nevada is expected to make an announcement tomorrow. >> this is trending in a very, very good direction and that is why we are now approaching a new phase in this pandemic. >> reporter: cases are down 44% from l

rochelle walensky is saying we'll follow the data and the science. is the science there?t i think the public needs to hear, look, the game clock is still ticking. we can't afford to pause and we can't stop playing while the movement is still in motion. we need to be watching case levels at a very hyper fashion, meaning how many infections are there where you live? what are the access to vaccines, to treatments? what's the surge in the hospitals in the community where you are? are we ready to pull back some of those bedrock and baseline preventions? i don't think we are. if we're following the data and the science, we'll be doing what's in the best interest of those who are vulnerable. >> you're hitting on something that i think is important. with all the rules of the road on this far end, the question is what is the bar, what is the measure, what is the metric that we think is going to tell us, or all of us, when we can loosen up, and also conversely, when restrictions and guidance needs to tighten up again? it's on the case count, and if you look at the case count, they

we heard rochelle walensky say masks need to stay on until covid is not. not rochelle walensky, randy wein garten, it is end demmic, never going to be done, it is like the common cold. by you saying we need to have masks until it is wiped off the planet, we would have masks forever. highlights something curious. we have been highlight thanksgiving fiszure in the democratic party between the woke left and moderates and that has been seen from the economy to crime to social issues. now it is front and center when it comes to covid, they have a problem on their hands. you see rank and file democrat in rural america doesn't want masks anymore. they want sanity and this biden administration is focused on the wrong things and alienating democrats. >> carley: speaking of a real problem, did you see this? president biden's approval rating 39% and clear politics average of polls. >> todd: that is problematic for the white house. one warning members of the party to come up with a new strategy or they will be wiped off the map. live from washington with more. griff j

. >> cdc director rochelle walensky said we're not quite there on easing restrictions.sed a bipartisan amendment allowing parents to opt children out of masking once the house of delegates passes it, it goes to governor youngkin. >> charles: thanks, charles. we have reached out to the loudoun county public schools for a statement. we have yet to hear back from them. megan, you've been at the forefront of this going back to last fall. progress is being made. we have the vote in the senate of virginia house, 21 yes and 17 neys are. you seeing a lot of these democratic states drop the mask mandates, some vindication that maybe victory is within sight? >> i surely hope so, charles. thanks for having me on. at this point, it's complete theater on their side. honestly, all we see is politics. it seems like a game. the pawns that they're using are our children and it's time to stop. >> charles: why do you think that is in jen psaki today said teachers and students should still wear masks even if the state drops the requirement. >> the same masks that rochelle walensky said tha

rochelle walensky said because there's high areas of transmission of omicron, we can't change our mask do you agree or disagree? >> no, martha, i don't agree with that. it's not so much where it is in the larger community but what is it in the setting that you're in. with the debate about schools, schools have always been a very low transmission zone for covid. i think this is what many people are realizing, that the risk of transmission acquisition within the school setting is extremely low, even if one is in a community where there's significant transmission. the risk for students has always been not the schools. it's been the community in which they live, the dinner table in which they have dinner at. >> martha: but masks off on on for everybody in the general public, restaurants, schools across the board in your opinion? >> i think we're at a stage, and we have been for several weeks now, where each individual has to take the personal responsibility for how they want to best protect themselves against covid. there's no question that masks can play a role. i think people really over

rochelle walensky says she knows americans are working hard to get out of the covid crisis but we are there yet. >> we are still at 290,000 cases per day. we still have hospitalization rates that are higher than they ever were during the peak of our delta wave and similarly, deaths still at 2300 per day. kumasi: in an interview, she is costlessly -- cautiously optimistic but we are not at a place where vaccines, testing, and treatment will keep most of the population safe from covid. she pointed out that hospitals are overwhelmed and if the country wants to move on, that has to improve first. reggie: booster shots will not be required if you are visiting hawaii. the governor evers plans a few weeks ago citing declining case counts and hospitalizations's on the mainland. he also said hawaii's high rate of vaccination and boosting as a reason not to mandate boosters for tourists. we have to have both shots of the vaccine and you can bypass the mandatory quarantine or proof of a test. to stay up-to-date on the latest covid headlines, we have more information on our website including a pl

rochelle walensky, is urging caution. >> yes, we are preparing, we are working on following the trends moment. what i will say. , though, is that our hospitalizations are still high, our death rates still high. as we work toward that end we are encouraged by the current trends, we are not there yet. laura: for more on the situation in the u.s. and around the world, let's bring in the dark director of the yale institute of global health. welcome back. the cdc director says we are not. , but u.s. states are lifting mask mandates anyway. isn't this confusing for americans? >> absolutely. this is adding to the confusion. that on this when i think the cdc is right, there is a happy median between now and never in terms of liing mask mandates and some of the other restrictions. that happy median is following the local rates of deaths and availability of other medication. so at this point i think we are not there yet, but we will be there soon. laura: everybody wants to know when soon is. dr. fauci has said that we could soon reach an equilibrium with the virus. when do you think that could b

rochelle walensky says it's too soon to end mask mandates. >> we still have hospitalization eporhiwave, and similarly for . stes annedma 17-year-olds fully vaccinated, walensky says that could leave children at risk.r are in schools, and that the masking has allowed them to be in school safely. that and getting our children vaccinated. >> reporter: new york may let its indoor mandate expire tomorrow but keep the school mandate until vaccination numbers improve. >> it makes great sense to wear a mask if you're around people that you don't know whether or not they're vaccinated. >> reporter: at the u.s./canada border, truckers protesting canada's vaccine restrictions continued for a 12th day. >> we're not asking you to stop what you're doing. just stop forcing it on us. >> reporter: yesterday they closed part of a bridge that acts as a key trade line for detroit's auto industry, sparking fears the slowdown could lead to temporary layoffs north of the border. >> if you're one of these protesters and you expect those hundreds or thousands of people who can't go to work that day to show up

rochelle walensky just said about masks in schools. >>> the battle over masks tonight as some governors say the mandates will go away, leaving it up to schools. tonight, parents in suburban chicago protesting over schools keeping the masks, after new jersey, delaware, oregon, connecticut are now moving to lift the mandates in schools. when will we hear from new york's governor on masks? and tonight, what the cdc director just said. we'll have latest. >>> also tonight, the security scare involving the second gentleman. vice president kamala harris's husban

that's according to the cdc director, doctor rochelle walensky who spoke at a white house coronavirusefing earlier today. she noted there are still more than 2000 people dying in the u.s. every day. she notes that is down about 9% from last week, even with the decline in cases and deaths in the easing of restrictions. doctor walensky says there are still some places where people should be wearing masks. >> our list of the level of disease burden in your community. there are still very important times to continue to wear your mask. if you're symptomatic or feeling unwell, you should wear a mask. if you're in the 10 days after a covid diagnosis, you should wear a mask. if you are exposed to someone with covid-19 and are quarantining, you should wear a mask. >> during today's briefing, officials said they're working on a plan for how to deal with covid in the future. once the worst of the pandemic is over today, san francisco mayor london breed laid out the next steps and the challenges ahead. >> for whoever is chosen, replace the 3 commissioners we called in yesterday's special election

last week cdc director rochelle walensky announced a change to federal mask mandates was in the worksle most states have started to relax mask mandates, it is not clear how the new federal guidelines will affect face covering requirements on public transportation. >>> an outbursts has one of tennis' top stars out some serious cash world number three alexander zverev was fined $40,000 and withdrawn from the mexican open after striking the crisis in ukraine the deepening. russian forces now surrounding the capital of kyiv. the key moves president biden is now making in response. plus -- >> i want to be able to have a choice to wear a mask or not in a classroom. >> kicked out of the classroom for not wearing masks. what a north bay school did that has students protesting. >> and things are expected to warm up this weekend, but not too much. meteorologist kari hall tracking your weekend forecast as you make those plans. this is "today in the bay." >>> it's friday

cdc director doctor rochelle walensky is expected to discuss next steps at the white house this coming week and then released plans next week. the agency has said it's not ready to drop indoor mask requirements just yet, but we'll see what they come up with. the holiday weekend was the first weekend since california lifted its indoor mask mandate and every county in the bay area except for santa clara county has follow the state's lead and is no longer requiring masks indoors for those who are fully vaccinated. now we asked one business owner in baraga how he and his customers are handling that change. and here's what he had to say about that. >> we have people wanting to continue wearing mask and then there are those choose not to store. some of my staff continues to wear masks and that's fine with us. if they're comfortable doing that. and i would say anywhere from, you know, maybe 50 to 60% of our customers continue to mask up. >> one concern he did have is whether cases will start to rise again. i know that's on everybody's mind. and that could potentially cause the mask mandate to

. >> cdc director doctor rochelle walensky said last week the agency wants to give people a break from mask-wearing when appropriate now reports the cdc could update its masking guidance as early as this friday working off a severe disease metric like hospitalization, loss of vaccination makes the most sense to me for mask. guidance. >> ucsf, infectious disease specialist doctor monica gandhi says. >> if she were writing the cdc's new policy, a county where the vaccination rate above 70% and at least 20% icu capacity available could lift its indoor mask mandates. she says tracking cases in community transmission. he's no longer dependable. >> the amount of testing you do determine the amount of pieces you see and they're actually places you do not test as much as california. and the second is that we now have a home health kits even available to the government. and we don't actually record those cases to the u.s. government's like they do in the uk report those cases. the national health service. so case rates are actually getting increasingly unreliable. >> well, indoor masking has be

rochelle walensky, cautioning the country isn't prepared to lift rules yet. >> i don't think we're there right now. i know people are cautiously optimistic. >> reporter: meantime, ongoing protests in canada are impacting detroit drivers. the ambassador bridge is still partially shut down causing major slowdowns between the u.s. and canada and new cdc data showing a subvariant of omicron known as b.2 is more prevalent accounting for nearly 4% of new infections in the u.s. so far there's no evidence the b.2 variant makes the virus more severe, and omicron still accounts for the rest of the new cases the same way delta used to just two months ago, mona. >> em, thank you. >>> a massive fire in oklahoma city overnight, flames quickly spread through this apartment complex that was under construction spreading from the roof and collapsing several parts of the building but we're told no one was living in the building just yet. and no injuries were reported. >>> turning now to the standoff with russia and there appears to be some diplomatic confusion in the crisis over ukraine. french president e

cdc director doctor rochelle walensky plans to meet with the white house this wednesday. the plans could be released as early as next week. the agency has said it is premature at this time to drop indoor mask mandates despite covid cases plummeting in recent weeks, the vast majority of counties across the country still fall in the high transmission category. >> today is a holiday for a lot of people. it is also the first full weekend since the state lifted its indoor mask mandate. meaning you no longer have to wear a mask indoors, most places. this is aside from santa clara county. today we checked in with businesses and the east bay, for example, the owner of moraga hardware and lumber says it's lifted the mask, but they also are not discouraging people from wearing masks. >> we have people wanting to continue wearing mask and then there are those choose not to store. some of my staff continues to wear masks and that's fine with us. if they're comfortable doing that and it's kind of the same way with customers. and i would say anywhere maybe 50 to 60% of our customers co

>> it was last week when cdc director rochelle walensky said the agency was looking to update its maskce now reports that update could come as early as this friday mask. guidance for the cdc should be based on in a region. you can drop mask mandate based on the hospitalization rate for covid. >> and also link that with the vaccination rate for covid. right now, the cdc looks at case counts in transmission. >> but ucsf, infectious disease specialist doctor monica gandhi says going county's icu capacity and vaccination rate are the best metrics to determine whether an indoor mask mandate should be lifted. >> i would go on to 70% vaccination rate in a region to drop a mask mandates. klaas hospitalization rate that is within be sent. and what i mean by that is either having 20% of your icu empty. so basically an 80% icu rate or the second is having 10 over 100,000 people in the hospital for covid-19. so a covid hospitalization metric. well, indoor masking has been lifted in most places in california. the mandate remains in schools. gandhi believes the new hospitalization and vaccine metric

rochelle walensky just said about masks in schools.tle over masks tonight, as some governors say the mandates will go away, leaving it up to schools. tonight, parents in suburban chicago protesting over schools keeping the masks, after new jersey, delaware, oregon, connecticut are now moving to lift the mandates in schools in the coming weeks. when will we hear from new york's governor on masks? and tonight, what the cdc director just said. we'll have latest. >>> also tonight, the security scare involving the second gentleman. vice president kamala harris's husband doug emhoff evacuated from a school

rochelle walensky saying based on metricser more than 70% of americans are living in communities at low risk and can consider removing their masks. >> we want to give people a break from things like mask wearing when our levels are low, and then have the ability to reach for them again should things get worse in the future. >> reporter: under the old guidelines the cdc focused primarily on case numbers as shown here, but the new framework highlighted on this map now also factors in covid hospitalizations and hospital capacity to determine areas of low, medium, or high risk. >> i think it is the right time. we are off the omicron surge, and we have a large proportion of our population now vaccinated and immunized. and that means moving towards these new metrics makes a lot of sense. the cdc also saying it is now safe for schools to drop masking except in high-risk areas. >> the truth is, these should be community wide decisions, and if unmasking is good enough for bars, restaurants, and basketball games, they're good enough for schools as well. >> reporter: masks on public transportation

rochelle walensky saying new guidance will be coming, but that now is not the time to lift mask mandates. even so, today, with those new announcements from new york, rhode island, and illinois, at least nine states now rolling back restrictions within weeks. new york's governor kathy hochul citing a 93% fall in cases since last month's peak, saying, quote, this is exactly what we've been waiting for. tomorrow, new york will end its emergency mask or vaccination requirement for businesses imposed two months ago when omicron hit. but masks will still be required in hospitals, health care facilities, public transportation, and in schools, as i mentioned. she said, until march, after the february break. she said more guidance will be coming. and tonight, even as the debate over masks continues, whether to take them off now or wait a few more weeks, one thing does appear certain, at least for now, that we are headed in the right direction. and dr. anthony fauci weighing in today about where he sees this all headed. abc's whit johnson leading us off tonight. >> reporter: tonight, with omicron

rochelle walensky is asked if americans should listen to their senators or prevention for disease control. this is about 30 minutes. jeff: good morning and thanks for joining us. today we'll begin with a statement from dr. with a kensly on the -- dr. walensky on the state of the pandemic and the c.d.c.'s efforts. dr. walensky: thank you. i'd like to start by walking through today's data. the average of cases is about 247,300 cases per day. a decrease of about 44% over the previous week. that seven-day average of hospital admissions is about 13,000 per day, a decrease of about 25% over the previous period. and a seven-day average of daily deaths are at about 2,400 a day, which is an increase of about 3% over the prior week. this week we reached a tragic new mark of 900,000 deaths in this country from covid-19. each week i share with you the burden of disease in the united states, including case counts, hospital admissions and the number of deaths. much of the data i readily share is because we have made huge strides in our ability to effectively monitor this virus. and those tools allow us

r we now recognize the director rochelle walensky said wearing ordinary non-n95 masks reduces your chance of getting covid-19 by 80% and that's just not true. we seem to be seeing an increasing wave of people seeing things -- saying things that are not fact. i don't think it's entirely left-wing thing. we are seeing people say things that are a not true and to agree with the thing and risk losing your job. >> are there any questions? in the back and if you would state your name and if you have an affiliation. [inaudible] spare for the livestream he asked where the livestream we asked were dcs now and where we going down the road?d? >> frankly this may not be popular. what is the name of this topic? safe speech. this may not be safe speech. i i think the woke has morphed into a basically made possible the covid narrative as well in a way that people are being canceled just like they were for and correct political speech and how they are being canceled for incorrect science. there's a slew of medical doctors and scientists who are totally object with the mainstream narrative and what's goin

side saying one thing and joe biden, the president, gets up and says something different and rochelle walensky confuses it even more. i don't know what to think and this is how the majority of americans feel, republicans and democrats. >> todd: you bring pack a good point. we are focusing on mandates, this goes back to the vac. democrats told you not to take the vaccine when trump made the vaccine. when they got into office, they disavowed any credit to president trump for making the vaccine and then said have you to get it. such confusion and ridiculousness. if you are a republican, you need to drive home the democrats are lying right now trying to say they end third degree pandemic. they will try to do it, that is what they will run on. republicans have to be laser-focused on the fact that is a bold-faced lie. >> ashley: it will take ron desantis and greg abbott denouncing that. i know people that planned weddings in florida because florida is not getting shut down. florida or texas. >> todd: also, it is sunnier, better wedding day. great point. you got to be laser focused if you're a republ

rochelle walensky has this to say. >> if and when when we update guidance, we will communicate that clearlysed on the data and signs. however, it's also important to remember regardless of but level of disease burden in your community, there still are important times to continue to wear your mask. kennedy: you can see the fear in her eyes, even she's still shocked she has that job. the cdc and doctor patrick pleading from behind, is the talk of the american public to move on without them make the follow the signs crowd follow us? tonight's panel, senior policy analyst temperature better federalist, inez stepman is back along with fox news political analyst, juan williams. great to see you. the foundation for economic education, cofounder of basic politics, brad polumbo, welcome, everyone. what an exciting time to be confused. i keep going into all of these stores and restaurants and everyone is wearing a mask but i think we don't have a mask mandate that the masks if you walk around without a mask, parents are still glaring at you and you can still catch a, here or there, what is doctor fau

i'm sure the head of the cdc doctor doctor rochelle walensky agrees, right? right?right now our guidance has not changed. we have continued to recommend masking in areas of high and substantial transmission, essentially everywhere in the country and public indoor settings. we continue to recommend universal masking in our schools. kennedy: way to throw cold water on to talk something. she says covid is still everywhere and restrictions will saint place. should we keep wearing masks? i guess so but in the last two days states including big blue ones like new york and california set the mass are no longer necessary. do i listen to the cdc or make government but maybe jen psaki and clear it all up. jen? >> people are tired of masks, not even if you look at the polling, there's a huge chunk of people who still want masks. when you are in high transmission area, everywhere in the country, where mass indoors including the poor. there are states that have rolled back there mask guidelines that have given more flexibility to communities, they are different. it's not uniform

. >> carley: cdc said cloth masks don't prevent the spread of omicron so for rochelle walensky yesterday to say that, she is not following her own science. cdc has been damaged, used to be a respected organization now it is totally political. >> todd: cdc, you had one job and failed to do it, you became politicized and provided so many mixed messaging, i don't know where they stand. i've read, i have no idea, it changes by the hour and the biggest issue, some point covid will become indemic, how can we trust going forward on noncovid issues, cancer, things like that? it does raise the question, i think you and i probably both trusted them prior to march of 2020. >> carley: i didn't think of them really. >> todd: the cdc says something, i shouldn't have as many eggs or cut down on bacon, i don't know if i can trust them. never cut down on bacon, i apologize. >> carley: or eggs either, absolutely. >> todd: something i should pay attention to. >> carley: one thing i disagree with and this came up in the press conference with jen psaki yesterday. americans are confused by what is going on be

jackie: there is an issue with the cdc and guidance, people have questions, doctor rochelle walensky update the guidance when they are more clear but it feels like within the last year or so, confidence has been lost in our organization essentially in front of us to lead and set the tone. >> my personal opinion is the cdc is getting calls from the white house dictating policy, that's why school closures happen and boosters were recommended in young people even though the experts said no, no data to support it and now we are learning the cdc has not been disclosing data, pavement covering data specifically on boosters and people under 50. jackie: let's talk about the boosters, there was a dramatic drop in respect to the people who chose to get the vaccines but then chose to follow up with a booster, obviously there are issues we are dealing with right now overseas dominating the headlines but nobody is saying have to get of second booster or do this or that, is this part of a conversation over for now? >> i think people recognize they've been lied to by public health officials and one

i think that's why you heard rochelle walensky say, as far as the cdc is concerned, we are not readyre is a disconnect. i think that disconnect is largely political and not epidemiological driven. jonathan: thank you for being so clear. dr. chris beyrer. there is, a member of the health care community, an official, basically telling you this is backed by politics and perhaps not by science. tom: a lot of politics going on. i don't know where this is in new york or new jersey but how does devolve into the city level, the borough level, in upstate new york, the villages and towns? i am unclear on that. jonathan: and the schools. the difference between the mask mandate for adults and kids in school. kailey: when governor made this announcement yesterday, it did not apply to a a lot of areas. the efficacy when it comes to children, which under five still are not vaccinated either, is a different conversation. jonathan: we are down more than 0.8% on the s&p. give me a second. go on. tom: continue, please. jonathan: yields unchanged. kailey: he just wanted to be heard. jonathan: you got a

rochelle walensky is behind this piece. this piece is inexcusable.need all data all the time to make our own decisions. the idea of the lack of transparency is an enormous problem and breeds distrust. where this is coming from, there's a patch york out there that jonathan serrie just said. the cdc needs to transfer from being something that looks and retrospect at something in real time during the pandemic, but trace, they've had plenty of time to do that. they need more money. they need probably 20 to $30 billion that they don't have. they need boots on the ground in every state to assemble the data in real time to correlate it and to give it out to us. one more point. he's point about teams is crucial to a practicing internalist like me. i want to figure out not whether to vaccinate teens, i'm on board with that, but how about a booster? i want to know what the risk of severity and hospitalization is and more importantly what the risk of long covid, which is, which may be decreased by the vaccine. i want to argue that by having the data. data needs

rochelle walensky saying at a white house briefing the government is contemplating a change to its maskbiden administration pushes for another $30 billion in coronavirus related spending.

anthony fauci, rochelle walensky. after him because he's not a doctor, even though only three prior health secretaries who were doctors. that put him behind the ball in getting involved in the dynamics dealing with covid, but has also put him in the situation where now a lot of blame has been laid on him for not knowing what's going on, not being a part of it when it was structured he wasn't a part of it. you see the white house moving swiftly after a bunch of bad stories becerra received to change that. i'm told president biden called the secretary himself said i've got your back. i like the job you're doing. we're going to get you more involved with everything. >> working on the story, total coincidence, i'm sure. but the other thing that is interesting about your story, isaac is that you're finding out that becerra was not biden's first choice for this position? also that doesn't do wonders for a secretary's confidence dealing with something as important as covid. >> look, xavier becerra was kali kali attorney gene

but rochelle walensky, and fauci, they are holding onto these mandates with a death grip. they don't want to let them go. >> it's about government control. what's crazy about this -- by the way, the poll date -- you quoted is cnn poll. in 2020, we kept on saying those polls are skewed, they under polled republicans, trump voters, and guess what? chris cuomo who attacked us, said our polls were wrong, et cetera, and we were saying the election was close, he's wrong, he's gone, your ratings are up and i tell you what, our polls, right now the voters say 60% say joe biden should be tested cognitively and he should be made public. that's how bad it's gotten. most americans think this guy doesn't have the capacity to run the country, and guess what? the rest of the world knows it. this is really scary right now and his job disapproval, it's 57%. that's a ton of votes for republicans to get, including 22% of the biden voters now think they disapprove of him. 22% democrats, 25% liberals, 25% african americans, 50% of the hispanics, and ford 5% of urban voters, the democrat party

rochelle walensky said they are encouraged by the current trends, but, quote, we are not there yet.have a lot of news to get to you and cbs's mola lenghi is going to start us off in new york city. good evening, mola. >> reporter: good evening, norah. as the pandemic drags on, there are signs of hope tonight that things are getting better. but americans are frustrated. 46% of those recently polled said it is time to get back to normal. >>> as covid fatigue continues, dr. anthony fauci is sounding optimistic, telling the financial times, we are heading out of the full-blown pandemic phase of covid-19. this as more states are easing indoor mask mandates. today new york, massachusetts, rhode island and illinois all announcing changes. joining five other states that announced roll backs this week. nevada is expected to make an announcement tomorrow. >> this is trending in a very, very good direction and that is why we are now approaching a new phase in this pandemic. >> reporter: cases are down 44% from last wikipeeek and have fa from january 15 when omicron was peaking. but cases are st

rochelle walensky said about relaxing the indoor masking restrictions. what the future may hold for us for this virus and we need to be prepared. we want to give people a break on things like mask wearing when levels are low and have the ability to reach for them again, should things get worse in the future. >> does this move concern you at all, that perhaps some people won't be as vigilant as they had been before? and are you still seeing any evidence of more variants poppingup. >> so, one bitten, twice shy for the cdc. i do wonder, i'm the father of a 4-year-old who can't be vaccinated. you've got folks immune owe compromised. we have to be vigilant about them. at the same time, cdc has experience on declaring victory on the virus last spring and summer. everybody remembers last summer, we take our masks off and then delta came. what the cdc is not declaring, there are risks for cases that could pop up and drive cases and potentially deaths, though, that's not the circumstance that we face right now. so what they're trying to do is hedge against the fu

>> cdc doctor rochelle walensky says now is not the time, highlighting viruses and deaths. when is the right time? we'll discuss that in a moment. let's discuss with dr. richard besser, who is also the ceo of the foundation. good morning, dr. besser. >> good morning. glad to be here. >> where do you stand now? you have diverging paths between not just republican governors but democratic governors in the epicenter in new york which has been the surge of the virus. the mayor says now is not the time. what are you hearing? >> these times are always challenging. when you hear the cdcdc doctor speaking, she is taking a major look at what's going on. i'm in new jersey where we were hit early by omicron and seeing a dramatic rise in cases and deaths. we are not out of the woods, but we are seeing some light which is really wonderful. as a pediatrician, i think it's absolutely critical to keep kids in school, and we've had a big focus on that. but now there may be an opportunity to work on improving the experience children have at school. for a lot of children, wearing a mask is a

rochelle walensky, said the cdc is looking at new metrics for relaxing pandemic guidance, including masks, and would deliver the guidance soon. remember to stay up-to-date on the covid headlines and rule changes. go to abc 7 news.com/coronavirus. alma: there is encouraging news about the health of firefighters injured in a fire in oakland. one of those was released last night. the second one home today. . oakland fire officials say the third remains hospitalized. the evacuation near 880 and 980 was forced. if multiple people were forced out of the building? dan: advances in dna testing technology are tested for helping solve a 25-year-old old case in sonoma county. according to the sheriff's office, dna evidence admitted to a richmond lab last year matched that of a convicted felon. it is a mystery surrounding the death of someone who is buddy -- who is badly beaten body was found near a field in 1996. >> the family was relieved. it is a prime example of how we do not forget about the victims. . and this is us doing that. dan: he was serving a 231-year sentence for a string of violent cri

house republicans pressuring cdc rochelle walensky to do better with school mask mandates. letter "cdc is undermining its own credibility as it continues to jeopardize an entire generation development." >> ashley: kentucky congressman james comer signed off on the letter and joins us now to react. okay, congressman, you have other countries who are literally pushing back on all of these mask mandates for kids here they are saying it's not healthy for them, not to mention the mental issues. but when it comes to the issue of omicron, todd and i were talking earlier, i personally don't know anyone who had may be severe cold with omicron and now all of a sudden a push with mask mandates, talking about the vaccine for really young kids. when is the cdc going to step in and take responsibility for this? because this is affecting their mental health. there is a mental health crisis. when are they going to step in and say enough is enough and who is it going to take to help these kids because somebody has to help these kids question rick >> that is exactly right. we hear from paren

>> it was last week when cdc director rochelle walensky said the agency was looking to update its maskce now reports that update could come as early as this friday mask. guidance for the cdc should be based on in a region. you can drop mask mandate based on the hospitalization rate for covid. >> and also link that with the vaccination rate for covid. right now, the cdc looks at case counts in transmission. >> but ucsf, infectious disease specialist doctor monica gandhi says going county's icu capacity and vaccination rate are the best metrics to determine whether an indoor mask mandate should be lifted. >> i would go on to 70% vaccination rate in a region to drop a mask mandates. klaas hospitalization rate. that is within recent. and what i mean by that is either having 20% of your icu empty. so basically an 80% icu rate. this or the second is having 10 over 100,000 people in the hospital for covid-19. so a covid hospitalization metric. well, indoor masking has been lifted in most places in california. the mandate remains in schools. >> gandhi believes the new hospitalization and vacci

rochelle walensky says some of these moves are happening to quickly.carnethon is a professor of epidemiology, pulmonary and kregel care at northwestern university feinberg school of medicine. welcome to the newshour. thanks for making the time. massachusetts the latest in a growing list of states to announce when they will end the mask mandates in the weeks ahead. is this the right call for them to be making? >> i have significant concerns about the timing for making this call. what i am hearing are lowered rates of disease in the community as a justification. when really the cdc announced they are -- there are many communities across the unit states that still have high transmission and our schools are not separate from our communities but are part of them. if we see spread in the community, it is ao likely we will see spread in schools particularly when we take away the one strategy that we have and we know works to prevent spread. >> let me ask you about that spread in communities. the cdc director said masking should continue in areas where high tr

director rochelle walensky explained that the numbers aren't as bad they may seem, because at some hospitalso 40% of the patients who are coming in with covid-19 are coming in not because they're sick with covid, but they're coming in with something else and have had the omicron variant detected. okay, sure, but even if people aren't coming in for covid initially, the hospitals are still overflowing. that's like saying, "uh, technically, up to 40% of people who drowned on the "titanic" were already wet because they were in the bathtub when the ship went down. ( laughter ) so, not so bad. not so bad. ( laughter ) you want to know how sick of this pandemic we all are? check out this headline that cnn thought we all needed to hear: "five reasons you should not deliberately catch omicron to 'get it over with.'" well, obviously, you shouldn't deliberately catch omicron. and should i? ( laughter ) i mean, all the other late night hosts are doing it. i'm starting to think they had a secret sleepover, and i wasn't invited. ( laughter ) now, i know, aww. now, it seems ridiculous to purposely catch co

rochelle walensky officially gave her endorsement for the two dose vaccine for adults and the same age. the cdc is also considering expanding the interval between the first and second of pfizer and moderna. to eight weeks. it's four for pfizer and four for moderna. >>> the u.s. has decided to design their waste water across the area. to give local agencies a chance to shift resources and warn the public. now, earlier i spoke with dr. steven parodi. he's the director of the medical group at kaiser permanente. he talked about the way of changing the way we deal with covid. listen to what he had to say. obviously, if you want to start that dealing with covid as a public health emergency and start dealing with it as a flu. let's list concrete examples. california where you are, a statewide mask mandate is set to expire in ten days. so, do you think that should be allowed to expire. >> so, i anticipate, given the amount of covid that we're still seeing and the per attach of people that are still testing positive when we run a test, that it's probably too soon to lift the restrictions around