ashish jha about all of this and more but we begin our coverage with nbc's sam brock. >> reporter: with the christmas holiday pouring kerosene on a covid fire already blazing, some of the nation's biggest school districts are getting aggressive about protecting students starting in the new year, with new york city leading the charge, ending full classroom quarantines on january 3rd and ramping up at-home testing. >> two clear messages we're saying loud and clear. your children are safer in school the numbers speak for themselves >> reporter: the plan in new york city includes funneling some 2 million testing kits to schools, two per student when a classmate is infected. school districts in chicago to san diego also passing out those hard-to-find tests in hopes of keeping more kids in the classroom. testing a critical component as more than 80% of 5 to 11-year-olds have yet to get vaccinated >> i believe kids need to develop immunities to the flu, to covid, to different variants. i'm vaccinated, but i'm just not comfortable vaccinating my child. >> reporter: childhood infections now soar

>> sam brock starting off our coverage from miami. thank you. >>> there is still a lot of questions about the new recommendations. tonight i spoke with the president's top medical adviser, dr. anthony fauci and began by asking him about the cdc's decision to shorten the isolation time and why now. >> we have so many people simultaneously testing positive you want to make sure that particularly among essential workers that you get people out there much sooner and by much, i mean cutting it in half saying that five days of isolation, then come out and wear a mask for the rest of the time so you can keep people safe from getting infected from you if you still are infected, but at the same time getting you back to what might be an essential function in society. >> what do you say to people who are concerned that these revised quarantine guidelines are being driven solely by worker shortages and not necessarily in the best interest of public health? >> no, actually, we feel that it is safe to do that if you look at the chance of getting a

>> sam brock in miami, florida tonight. sam, thank you >>> now to the state of emergency just declared in colorado tens of thousands suddenly ordered to evacuate their home to escape several dangerous wild fires there. crews outside denver right now battling fierce flames fueled by punishing winds some gusts topping 110 miles an hour. emilie ikeda has the very latest. >> evacuate your homes as soon as possible to go as far east as you can. >> reporter: tonight a life threatening situation near boulder, colorado where fires are forcing thousands of families to evacuate >> we saw a big plume of smoke over in that direction. >> reporter: flames reaching their doorsteps. people desperately trying to get to safety. >> we're evacuating, trying to get down to boulder, denver, maybe the mountains. just try to figure out something. god help us. >> reporter: on foot and by car, entire communities on the move to escape from the fast-moving flames. >> just traffic. so much traffic. that little town is just all trying to get out. >> repo

all crew members were vaccinated they are working right now, kristen, to determine the variants >> sam brock starting us off from miami. sam, thank you >>> to the white house now and that decision to lift the travel ban from those eight african countries. monica alba joins us monica, why did the cdc advise the president to lift those restrictions right now? >> reporter: well, kristen, president biden placed restrictions on those countries last month based on recommendations from his medical team to give the u.s. more time to figure out how omicron spreads. now that they understand the variant better, the cdc advised the president to end the travel pause since vaccines are considered the best protection and the strain is already so dominant around the globe. the temporary ban will be lifted december 31st, according to the white house. meanwhile, the president and first lady spent this christmas eve visiting patients at children's national hospital here in washington, stopping by a local tree featuring dr. biden, and calling in to a santa tracker to greet families and check on his progress thi

sam brock, nbc news. >>> the committee investigating the january 6th insurrection vote voted to hold mark meadows in contempt meadows did hand over thousands of documents the house panels said they want to ask him questions about the information. members read allowed some text messages meadows received. >> yesterday was a terrible day. we tried everything we could in our objection to the 6th, i am sorry nothing works. an elect lawmaker tells the white house chief of staff, i am sorry, nothing worked. that's chilling. >> quote "mark, the president needs to tell people in the capitol to go home, this is hurt all of us, he's destroying his legacy" laura ingraham wrote please get him on tv, destroying everything you have accomplished ryan killmee texted it can he make a statement? shawn handy urged. >> meadows spoke with sean hannity and pushed back against the contempt recommendation. >> when you look at the criminal component of this, the intent, there is never been an intent on my part, i tried to share non privilege information but truly the executive privilege donald trump claims is

sam brock starts our coverage tonight >> reporter: covid's dominating grip on american life has darkenednother christmas. the united states surpassing 52 million infections since the start of the pandemic. new york and florida both smashing their single day highs this week with los angeles county alone nearly notching 10,000 cases in a day one california hospital treating patients in hallways and parking lots again. >> we are here i the triage tent in the parking lot at saint mary medical center due to the covid surge ingoong right now. >> reporter: an insatiable deman for tests has driven up the eye-popping numbers. log jams have crescendoed during the holidays in miami on christmas day the flow in and out of this vaccination site is being monitored by police with lines of cars spill out on to the main road going down several miles until finally ending here all of these people desperate for a test what time this morning did you get here >> 8:00 in the morning. >> just to make sure i don't have anything to give my family. >> reporter: a sobering indication this latest wave is not just a

we get more from sam brock. >> reporter: for all the magic and twists and turns that sports can bring. >> a scene we thought we may never see again. tiger woods back in a tournament >> reporter: tiger woods playing competitive golf, 10 months removed from a nearly fatal car accident that fractured his leg in multiple places. >> if you had asked me after those three months in the bed would i be here, i would have give you a different answer but there are no days off. you know, we worked every day. >> reporter: his miraculous return wasn't alone woods playing with his sensational 12-year-old son charlie in the buildup to a weekend exhibition pairing champions and family members. though charlie looking every bit the champion as they wrap up 18 holes today, it marks the first time that tiger has played in public since these two teamed up here last year the duo almost perfectly in sync during driving range warmups, tiger says he's still lacking some signature traits on his swing. >> it's just not as powerful. i just don't have the speed. >> reporter: tiger says he doesn't have the enduranc

this as omicron continues to interrupt holiday travel here's nbc's sam brock >> reporter: an omicronge in the midst of a travel rush, partly to blame for another spike in flight cancellations. >> they said that the reason why the flights were canceled was crew availability due to covid >> reporter: more than 2,000 domestic flights saturday and sunday, wiped away >> jetblue has canceled 10% of their flights. that's a huge amount of people that are inconvenienced. so it's fair to call this is a meltdown >> reporter: delta, american and unite have had seen 2% to 5% >> it's been kind of difficult there's been delays in the lines and the flights. >> reporter: how worried are you about covid spreading like wildfire right now >> it is a concern >> reporter: the demand is in overdrive for those seeing loved ones >> we have to do better. i think thing also improve greatly as we get into january that doesn't help us today and tomorrow >> reporter: from family gatherings to football fields, there's massive spread the fenway and military bowls, the latest games to go bark after boston college ha

in miami, sam brock, nbc news. >>> a group of mexican nationals are in custody this morning. accused of kidnapping nine people, murdering six of them, including three u.s. citizens. according to u.s. attorney's office nor central california, the group was based in tiajuana and will face charges in mexico. the ring leader, edmond garcia hernandez, investigators say they would lure victims under false pretences, hold them at gunpoint, demanding a ransom from relatives no word whether they will face charges here in the u.s. president biden and president putin had a more than two-hour meeting, the pair's first call since judgment mr. biden warning the u.s. would seek strong economic measures among other consequences if russia invades ukraine jay grey joins us from washington >> reporter: good morning to you, the white house is calling them high impact economic measures that could be put in place including possible sanctions on blanks and energy companies and defense firms. there is consideration of can selling the nordstream 2, the gap line project between russia and northern eur

nbc news' sam brock has more. >> reporter: for some of pro sports biggest stars, the covid hits keep on coming. odell beckham, jr., scoring monday night and landing on the covid reserve list along with eight other l.a. rams' players. >> this has definitely been the most unique challenging situation with covid trot nfl set a record with 37 positive cases monday 14 members of the cleveland browns in covid protocols and the help e head coach testing positive for the second consecutive season. >> our full expectation is to get out there with our guys and find a win >> the superstars also out the consisted of complications despite sky high vaccination rates in both leagues. nearly 95% of the nfl players and 97% of nba players and staff are fully vaccinated it comes in the midst of successful seasons with fans back in the stands >> while they don't want to postpone games this year, they've made that very clear last year, it was easy to move games around, because you didn't have fans that were a factor >> the nba's brooklyn nets didn't hit the court due to lack of available play zplers i ca

we begin tonight with nbc's sam brock. >> reporter: tonight an omicron surge in the midst of a travel rush partly to blame for another spike in flight cancellations. >> they said that the reason why the flights were canceled was the crew availability due to covid. >> reporter: more than 2,000 domestic flights saturday and sunday wiped away on one of the busiest travel stretches of the year. >> jetblue today for example has canceled 10% of their flights. that is a huge amount of people inconvenienced. i would definitely say it's fair to call this a meltdown. >> reporter: delta, united, and american have seen a more manageable 2% to 5% of flights canceled sunday but it doesn't soften the blow for many. >> kind of difficult. there's been delays in the lines as well as the flights. pretty much regular christmas flying. >> reporter: how worried are you about traveling with covid spreading like a wildfire? >> it is a concern. >> reporter: as airports are packed so are testing lines. the demand in over drive for those seeing loved ones. >> we've obviously got to do better. i think things wil

nbc's sam brock reports on the growing frustrations. >> reporter: fresh off our second christmas under the shadow of covid, americans wondering whether family gatherings will affect the spike in cases fueled by the omicron variant. frustration also spiking as many are struggling to get tested. outrageous lines at drive-through sites. >> ever think on christmas you'd be waiting in line for three hours? >> no, absolutely not. >> reporter: and chaos at testing centers. with tests sold out at many pharmacies. >> we've obviously got to do better. i think things will improve greatly as we get into january, but that doesn't help us today and tomorrow. >> there is hope for better help this year but also stark warnings about the state of the nation's overwhelmed and exhausted hospitals. >> the staffing situation is just absolutely atrocious. it's hard to describe just how bad it is. >> reporter: our health care front lines weakened by infection and attrition. the search continues in multiple states. in new york state, hospitalizations for 18 and under quadrupled. >> they're not seeing any cases

over to sam brock. seen in a couple of days flights delayed, canceled. hundreds of flights canceled across the board. how are things looking this morning? >> reporter: deja vu all over again, yasmin. at this very moment, 750 canceled, 800-plus delayed. united states and delta, big picture, 3% to 5% of all flights canceled so far. the bigger issue, delays. 7,700 of them yesterday. what that means for united, for example, more than half of all of their passengers yesterday did not arrive to their expected destination time within four hours of what that was supposed to be because of delays. reinforcement are on the way. talking about the new cdc guidelines, the doctor a second ago describing economic repercussions, thread the needle, was safe and good for the economy. both asked for short window for quarantine, those asymptomatic and vaccinated. got broader diedlines now from the cdc. notable, the flight attendants association, folks doing the most interaction with passengers, are much opposed. some cases, ten days to five might be okay, but not true across

nbc's sam brock joins us with more on how he's being remembered. ris, good morning. look, it just feels like there is nothing that this man did not touch. when you talk about john madden, his impact not just on football but as you said, pop culture and video games is as big as his personality. he did not play a single snap in the nfl, because of a bad knee injury, which ended up giving the world an incredible gift. on the sidelines, as an nfl head coach -- >> okay, come on, defense! >> let's start off and stay after them the whole game. >> reporter: and for decades as a broadcaster. >> it's just super football. i mean, i love these kinds of games. >> reporter: john madden left a larger than life footprint on the nfl. >> he makes a little basketball twist there and pivot and boom, the ball's there. >> reporter: with the winningest record in league history for any coach with a hundred or more games, a super bowl ring with the then oakland raiders, and his remarkably enjoyable maddenisms. >> boom! stay on your feet. that's it. boom, we cross him. >> re

sam brock has our report tonight. >> reporter: for some of pro sports' biggest stars, the covid hitst, then landing on the covid reserve list, along with eight other l.a. rams players. >> this has definitely been the most uniquely challenging situation we've dealt with, with covid. >> reporter: the nfl just set a record, with 37 positive cases on monday. 14 members of the cleveland browns now in covid protocols. plus kevin stefanski testing positive. in the nba, giannis antetokounmpo and james harden out. nearly 95% of the nfl players and 97% of nba players and staff are fully vaccinated. and it comes in the midst of successful seasons with fans back in the stands. >> they don't want to postpone games this year. they've made that very clear. last year, it was easy to move games around because you didn't have fans. >> reporter: but last night, the brooklyn nets nearly didn't take the court due to lack of healthy players. the nfl commissioner spoke about working with the players' association. and the nfl says there are no conversations going on about changing the status of any games. >

that omicron may be less severe and lead to fewer hospitalizations than previous variants nbc's sam brock has been covering this for us and has more this morning. sam, good morning to you >> reporter: kristen, good morning. let's start right now with breaking news with j & j that found it was effective offering 80% for those that mixed and matched. that said, kristen, we are looking at eye popping numbers across the country nearly 50,000 infectionsn i florida alone yesterday. half a million for the u.s >>> the country is in the midst of an omicron title wave the number of new cases nearly 300,000 a day, crushing the previous high water mark on wednesday, the u.s. breaking its single-day record with almost 500,000 cases, nearly double the peak figures from last winter. the cdc is on the defensive, explaining why it slashed isolation guidelines for infected individuals from ten days down to five, if symptoms have fully disappeared followed by five days of strict mask wearing around others. >> by the time five days of isolation has occurred, you probably have 85 to 90% of all of your transmi

sam brock live in florida, antonia hilton in connecticut, steve patterson in california and dr. william schaffner, prover in of internal medicine at vanderbilt medical center and also an adviser to the cdc. great to have all of you here. dr. schaffner, you've got all of these headlines but there's also still confusion about the cdc guidance cutting the isolation period to five days for asymptomatic people. here is the cdc director from two different interviews yesterday. some say she's telling different stories. take a listen. >> it really had a lot to do with what we thought people would be able to tolerate. the fact we were going to have so many more cases, many of those would be asymptomatic or mildly symptomatic. people would feel well enough to be at work, they would not necessarily tolerate being home and that they may not comply with being home. this was the moment that we needed to make that decision and those changes. these updates to our recommendations were made to reflect what we currently know about covid-19 infection. let me make clear that we are standing on the s

we want to go to the other side of the country, sam brock in miami. daily cases in florida there five times higher than two weeks ago. the curve there looks vertical. it's not really even a curve. it's like a line. now the miami dade mayor is taking new measures to combat covid. what's changing there? what are you seeing and hearing on this holiday? >> that's right. what we've seen in terms of the increase of infections is remarkable. 420% in two weeks. part of that equation is this. we've been talking about it all week. all the people that are coming in right now to get tested. the demand has tripled over the course of the last three or four days. 8,000 or 9,000 people a day getting tested. the problem is the positivity rates are also going up as you see the 7-day average in florida, we're looking at more than 10,000 cases a day. the bigger issue is the positivity rate in miami dade was about 15% yesterday. i'm told it's more like 30%. one out of every three cars is leaving with a positive covid-19. there's so much demand to get tested right now that

sam brock is in miami, jacob ward in san francisco, gary grumbach in washington, d.c. and ann ramoid is a prefer at ucla fielding school of public health. it's good to have all of you here. first to that breaking news about the j&j booster providing strong protection against severe disease and hospitalization. what's that mean for the big picture in fighting covid? >> reporter: well, for the big picture this is really terrific news. we are always looking to see what benefit do we have from the vaccine and from boosters. we've always known that these vaccines are going to be improved with additional shots, the mrna vaccines really a three-dose vaccine. we've always known that this is the case, and it makes sense that the j&j vaccine is also going to have measurable difference. although here in the united states we aren't using the j&j vaccine as much as we are globally, we need to have all vaccines available to us and to be able to have this be useful globally. of course, we have talked about this before, an infection anywhere is an infection everywhere. we need to get

nbc's sam brock is at miami international airport, where many people trying to get home are in for a long day. sam, good morning. >> reporter: it is a difficult path that lies ahead, willie. good morning. it is one of the busiest travel days of the year as you can see behind me. for united and delta they had to cancel more than 10% of all of their flights yesterday. so far today almost 600 flights grounded domestically. florida right now one of many states smashing covid records this week. it's already a turbulent start to a weekend jam packed with holiday travelers who increasingly are hearing four words they dread. your flight is canceled. on saturday delta scrapping more than 300 flights and united airlines more than 200 with a total number of domestic flights canceled nearly reaching a thousand though not all of them are due to covid depleting healthy crews. >> not really in our control, right? so we'll just see what happens. >> reporter: today could prove equally as disruptive with delta also blaming weather and anticipating at least 300 more cancellations, apologizing to passeng

nbc news correspondent, sam brock, has a report tonight. >> for some of pro's ford's biggest stars, theovid hits keep on coming. cole del become junior, scoring on monday night and landing on the covid reserve list along with eight other l.a. ramp players. >> this has definitely been the most uniquely challenging situation that we have dealt with covid. >> the nfl set a record with 37 positive cases on monday. 14 members of the cleveland browns now in covid protocols. plus head coach testing positive for the second consecutive season. >> it's our full expectation to head out there with our guys and seeing that will find a way. >> in the nba, superstars james harden are also out. the complications despite sky high vaccination rates in both teams. nearly 95% of the nfl players, and 97% of nba players of staff are fully vaccinated. and it comes in the midst of successful season with staff back in the stand. well, they don't want to postponed games this year. they have made that very clear. last, year it was eager to move games around because he didn't have fans that were factor. though, la

sam brock is in miami for us. dr. paul offit is director of the vaccine education center at children's hospital of philadelphia and is on the fda vaccine's advisory committee. dr. mario ramirez is an emergency physician and managing director at opportunity labs. welcome to you all, guys. thanks for joining us on this. dr. offit, i want you to weigh in first on these adjusted guidance when it comes to quarantining after either testing positive or being exposed to someone who is covid positive. >> i think it makes sense. i mean, if you're -- the way that this virus works, and most viruses work, is the virus initially reproduces its in the upper respiratory track. and then that's when you're most contagious, before you ever develop any symptoms, that's when you're most contagious. then what happens is, your immune system kicks in. and it's with your immune system that you get symptoms. with that, as the immune system ramps up, then you're contagiousness dramatically decreases. i think it's fair to say that if someone had

sam brock in miami and also with us, director of the center for infectious disease research and policy. and the founder and ceo of advancing health equity. josh, first to you at the white house. president biden still facing questions about testing delays and shortages. here's what he said an abc last night. >> we're nearly two years into this pandemic. you're a year into the presidency. empty shelves and no test kits in some places three days before christmas when it's so important. is that good enough? >> no. nothing has been good enough. but look where we are. we're in a situation now where we have 200 million people fully vaccinated. 200 million people fully vaccinated. >> josh, how concern second down the white house about the gap between the big announcement the other day and some of the positive news from south africa and the fact that we are light years away of where we were when joe biden took over, clearly, but what people see is these long lines for tests and now they want the test before the holiday with a variant which is more transmissible than anyone could have predicted.

sam brock, thank you. >>> and dr. otez, what would you like to hear from president biden and what would you like to see done that hasn't been done yet by the federal government? >> what i want to hear more anything else, our greatest vulnerability in this surge that now is beginning and yet will get worse over the next few weeks. and that is our health care workers and our vulnerability to collapse in our health system. here is why. we'll clearly see -- we still have delta, so still seeing hospitalizations from delta. we're still -- we'll see a lot of hospitalizations from omicron as well. and there is too much happy talk about omicron being mild illness when in fact it is still a serious illness. and if you are unvaccinated or only have two doses, we'll still see a lot of hospitalizations because so many people will get swept up in the firestorm. and so many health care workers will become sick themselves with covid over the next few weeks. one, because they have only gotten two doses of the vaccine which is not doin

joining me now is nbc news correspondent sam brock and msnbc medical contributor dr. kavita patel.ved as white house health policy director during the obama administration. dr. patel, good news from the pfizer ceo. with how much caution do you take the touting of the booster with him? >> katy, i'll take good news, especially when it comes to a variant we're watching globally. but with cautious. they took blood from patients who were immunized with two or three doses and used that lab to neutralize reproduction of the omicron virus in a lab setting, basically in a petri dish, if you will. we know from earlier experiments that that doesn't necessarily correlate to real world effectiveness. but this is great news. katy, it felt like two months ago we didn't even have footing on whether she should get boosters or not. that's shifted incredibly, including with this data. >> i remember having a conversation with you about it, and omicron appeared and i got my booster the next day. sam, let's talk about hospitalizations. what sort of i guess symptoms are hospitals seeing where you are? >>

i want to bring from monica alba and sam brock and dr. natalie azar and dr. roy. monica, let me start with you. the president emphasized. schools and businesses should stay open. he was not, he was clear, we are not where we were in march 2020. anecdo anecdotally, you and i feel we are returning to that. we have boosters and treatments. we are not in a lockdown phase. he alluded to a change for travel restrictions. he will talk to the medical team and potentially have news on that in the next few days. monica. >> reporter: hallie, the first words were to many americans feeling tired, worried, frustrated at this point nearly two years into the pandemic, i hear you and knowledge that. here is why we're not at the point we were in march 2020. that is the overall theme. the president trying to remind and tout the tools that exist to prevent severe illness and hospitalization and death. this was the stark warning for the unvaccinated. i picked up on the fact he went so far to say he was going to get criticized for this. he feels is a person's patriotic duty to get vacc

but he did rip a 320-yard drive today like the old tiger. >> sam brock, thank you for that.ent today. coming up, witnessing the ceremonial walk 60 years overdue, when "the 11th hour" continues. that can help you fall asleep faster, stay asleep longer, and wake up refreshed. the brand i trust is qunol. >>> the last thing before we go tonight is a moment 60 years in the making. president biden was the commencement speaker this morning at south carolina state university's graduation ceremony. the school is the hbcu alma mater of representative jim clyburn, who graduated back in 1961. there were no december graduation ceremonies held back then, so instead clyburn could only receive his diploma in the mail. but today the 81-year-old congressman who many credit for reviving the then struggling biden presidential campaign, finally got the chance to walk across the stage and be handed his diploma. >> bachelor of science, history, james e. clyburn. [ cheers and applause ] summa magna congressional cum laude. >> and that is our broadcast for this friday night with our thanks for being

craig, back to you. >> sam brock for us there in florida. latest covid surge. air travelers know they could face crowded lines and long lines and a huge number of americans are driving to their destinations. nbc's tom costello joins us with the big picture. good morning to you. >> reporter: kristen, good morning. yeah, the state troopers across the country, aaa, all saying this is the day, right? we know that about 100 million people are traveling by car 50 miles or more over this entire stretch of the holidays. think about that. that's almost a third of the population will be on the road at some point, traveling 50 miles or more. today, the busiest day, leading up to christmas. some sobering statistics, though. as you know, unfortunately this ises time of year when sometimes people have had too much to drink, they get in their cars. nearly 300 dui-related deaths in 2018, so the message from state troopers is, they're watching and, please, don't drink and drive. here in virginia, they're also very concerned about a huge increase in speed-rel

. >> joining me now is nbc news correspondent, sam brock, as well as dr. nahid bhadelia, she is an infectious diseases physician and the medical director of the special pathogens unit at boston medical center. also an msnbc medical contributor. sam, what else are we learning out of pfizer this morning? >> reporter: jose, good morning. it does get a little bit confusing, but here is the essence of it. what scientists are measuring right now is antibody production, when this vaccine is presented with the omicron variant. here's what they're finding. the difference between the second dose and the third dose is 25x, which is to say that if the antibody level starts at 6 after the second dose, it is now up to 154, and i'm told that number is a really good number and it correlates very highly with protection against infection. so that's that part of the equation. you also right now jose have to look for a frame of reference, that it's roughly the equivalent of receiving two shots against the original strain that came from china. so that's sort of your basis of co

morning, what this means for you throughout the holidays and the busy holiday travel season nbc's sam brockis kicking things off for us. sam, good morning. >> reporter: savannah, good morning. with more cases of the variant identified, the biden administration is getting more aggressive not just with vaccines and boosters, but also with testing these at-home kits cost about $30. find them online or with your local drugstore. starting next month, insurance companies will have to reimburse you for these. omicron now spreading on american soil. five new cases confirmed in new york alone >> the early cases that arise are not life threatening they seem to be minor cases and that is a source of good news for us right now >> reporter: so far, it's been reported in five states. the latest hawaii overnight. the mysterious variant's potential severity still unclear. a colorado woman just returned from southern africa where omicron is surging >> she is experiencing mild symptoms and is isolating at homed not been boosted >> reporter: it follows confirmed cases in california, san francisco and now l.a.

nbc's sam brock is in miami with the very latest. that's absolutely right. the omicron variant surging a massive jump in average cases. we're looking at a seven-day average of about 200,000 infections per day nationally. but one of the biggest stories continues to be the lines for testing and the inability to meet that demand i'm here in miami. it is mayhem right now we've been out here since 5:00 or 6:00 this morning where there were people waiting. look at this line right now. on the right-hand side, that is to get tested this morning that snakes around one side of the building as it tails around, you'll see people going to the other side of the building. that's the people here for free testing kits 27 locations in miami they will be provided those today. it's not clear how many of those supplies they actually have. it's three per family. this continues to go all the way around that building, kristen. dr. anthony fauci says at some point to mid to late january we will be at a point where there's enough testing kits for everybody, b

sam brock has more. >>>. >> reporter: as americans face another christmas with covid we face headwinds, starting in the skies with hundreds of cancellations already in the books for today. at least 250 so far for delta and united forced to ground 168 flights and counting. >> our cousin is flying from new jersey, their flight got cancelled. >> reporter: both companies acknowledging the virus has taken a toll on staffing with united saying it's working hard to rebook as many people as possible. the airport obstacles coming with sticker shock over the latest infection numbers. new york state and florida surging past their single days all-time highs with the seven-day average bumping up past the peak at delta currently at 138,000. part of the spike coming from a super charged demand for testing. here in miami -- >> it's a good thing people want to be tested and safe for the holidays. however right across the field we have a vaccination site no way. >> reporter: the lack of demand for shots, feeding a vicious cycle of patients, and americans in hospital beds filled with regrets. >> when som

i want to bring in sam brock who's covering the latest on all of this.with what i think is the headline catching the most potential this morning, the potential for those stricter testing requirements for international travel, right? what's coming down the pike? >> reporter: it's pretty clear, the white house is floating a couple of different ideas. the most likely scenario according to our reporting is more stringent testing international travel into the united states. also getting another test three to five days after you're here in the country. that does seem likely. there's also reports going on right now of a possible seven-day self-quarantine. there are indications at this point it's not being considered. a lot of this does seem to be fluid. with respect to the omicron variant, there has not been a single detected case so far, hallie in the united states. as you mentioned a second ago, brazil had its first instance. southern africa, europe, globally all over the world, 20 or so countries have seen the omicron variant. it stands to reason. scientists

sam brock now with that story >> reporter: for some of pro sports' biggest stars, the covid hits keepming odell beckham jr. scoring on monday night, then landing on the covid reserve list, along with eight other l.a. rams players. >> this has definitely been the most unique ly challenging situation we have dealt with, with covid. >> reporter: the nfl set a record with 37 positive cases on monday 14 members of the cleveland browns now in covid protocols plus head coach kevin stefanski testing positive for the second consecutive season. >> our full expectation is to get out there with our guys saturday and go find a way. >> reporter: in the nba, superstars giannis antetokounmpo and james harden also out. the covid complications despite sky high vaccination rates in both leagues. nearly 95% of the nfl players and 70% are fully vaccinated it comes in the midst of successful seasons with fans back in the stands. >> well, they don't want to postpone games this year. they have made that very clear last year it was easier to move games around because you didn't have fans that were a factor. >

sam brokic is -- brock is in miami. and dr.n, an social professor of answer theeiology, and critical care medicine. you will now be nbc's sam brock for me, sam, so i can keep it simple. let's talk about testing capacity and at-home tests. a lot are needed, there aren't that many out there. walk us through the reporting. >> reporter: first of all, you can just call me sam. we've known each other for years. >> it's been through the entire pandemic, and i haven't seen you once. it's crazy. >> reporter: you're actually correct. this social distancing at its finest. we are in miami, pretty representative of what we're seeing around the country. you just documented that new york city line snaking through the city. we're seeing a virtual lock jam here with nonstop cars. we just broke a record 26,800 new cases. that's the second highest daily figure since the delta variant swept over the state like a tsunami. one, certainly the spread of omicron. the other, katy, people cannot get at-home tests. the positivity rate i'm told by the mana

sam brock is live in miami. sam, good morning, how is it looking down there? domestically cancelled already. 560 and counting delays. the good news is travel experts say this should be getting better but then new year is around the corner, it should be a challenge. >> reporter: a brutal one-two punch of covid and weather delay. >> about 4:00 in the morning and we got to the airport and got on the plane and everything was fine and so one of the pilots didn't show up. >> reporter: one out of over 30 of its flights cancelled. for delta, weather snarling traffic at key hubs bike minneapolis and salt lake city and seattle. >> i spent about 12 hours in the san francisco airport. >> reporter: one delta flight from tampa to atlanta had to deal with criminal behavior. >> a woman ber raided a man for not wearing a mask. >> it evolves in punching and scratching. >> reporter: delta says the company has zero tolerance for unruly behavior. airlines for america and several airlines ceos supporting the shorter quarantine time issued by the cdc for sick crew members. the fligh

sam brock for us in miami. sam, thank you. >>> also this morning an ongoing battle over voting rights is intensifying. the justice department now suing the state of texas over its new redistricting plan, saying it would discriminate against minority voters. nbc's morgan chesky joins us from dallas with that story. morgan, good morning. >> reporter: yeah, savannah, good morning. at its core the d.o.j. said it is about minority voters and the changing in texas not getting roept asian. the lawsuit has two claims. that texas republicans were intentionally suppressing the minority vote. number two, that even if they weren't intentionally doing that, the result was still discriminatory. and the d.o.j. can win on either of those claims. >>> this morning a texas-size fight over voting maps. on monday the department of justice filed a lawsuit challenging texas republicans' plan for redrawing congressional and state legislative districts. the suit alleges the state's new maps violating the voting rights act because they d

nbc's sam brock is covering all that for us. sam, good morning. >> hi, craig good morning right now, there's little doubt we're in the middle of another wave the big question this morning is how bad is it going to get the trifecta of delta surging, omicron rising and peak flu season is daunting, but health experts say we are in a much better place than most countries. as we brace for another winter bout with covid, soaring cases from the uk to africa have the world health organization warning people not to be fooled by omicron's reportedly milder profile. >> we have seen what we have never seen before in an outbreak with this omicron. >> reporter: in the u.s., top cdc officials have modelled two scenarios, a massive wave of infection slamming communities as early as january where a smaller surge of omicron arriving in the screen cdc director rochelle walensky spoke with hoda and savannah >> is it more transmissible? >> it is and we're seeing that in other countries, as well >> how much more transmissible do you have any metric is

what's being done to stop all of it sam brock is in miami with more.umbers are way up the nfl says that two-thirds of the new infections are asymptomatic this right now as all three leagues are re-examining their covid policies to try to deal with the omicron variant. >> reporter: the nfl tackling covid safety again after a deluge of positive tests washington and cleveland alone have 18 players on covid reserve with the browns losing their starting quarterback baker mayfield and head coach who was vaccinated and boosted >> it's not ideal, obviously but the hope is to get a full practice in tomorrow if we can and we'll deal with tomorrow, tomorrow. >> reporter: the league's chief medical officer explaining some of the hundreds of new cases are link today the new omicron variant. >> we have a lot of people in the nfl who have low levels of antibodies >> reporter: sharpening the focus on booster shots any new rules would have to be approved by the league and its players association. >> i think it calls for modifications to our protocols in general and we'

hospitalizations are on the rise there is encouraging news this morning on the effectiveness of boosters sam brock is in miami with the latest sam, good morning. >> reporter: savannah, hoda, good morning scientists in israel now back up what pfizer told us last week which is boosters make a huge difference protecting you from omicron. this as the united states surpassed 800,000 people dying from covid americans are staring at a daunting new picture, nearly 120,000 new cases a day. >> we have the tools to protect ourselves. we have 60 million people in this country who are not yet vaccinated who are eligible to be vaccinated. >> reporter: now more evidence boosters do break up the spread of omicron. israeli scientists supplementing pfizer's with their own study. two doses leaves you vulnerable. that third dose even more effective against delta which has sparked a double digit increase in 40 states including the district of columbia, including new hampshire which is in a crisis situation and new york state at 58%. >> the omicron variant and the cold winter months are going to super charge covid and

sam brock joins me with more on this, and dr. hilton is joning me. she is also a medical contributor here on msnbc. so walk us through the in data out from pfizer just a few hours ago as cases across the country are again on the rise. >> that is just it. right now they're not good, we're looking at 110,000 infections per day. that is a level they have not been at since early october. six states in the midwest. deaths up by double digits in 19 different states, but we have encouraging news this morning that says they are effective at combatting omicron, however, you need that third shot, the antibody level is a 25 times increase. that brings you up to a level where you would be protected against that booster shot against that infection, all of that really is reassuring. now the ceo of pfizer was on today earlier talking with savanna about where this third shot puts you. here is what he said. so far looks like a third booster. >> it is important to know that two shots from early indications will still protect you. he says there is evidence to suggest t

sam brock has me new york is ma. >> reporter: kris, good morning, we are at a fragile point in the countrywith respect to covid. at this point the united states is seeing more than 100,000 cases of covid every day with concerns that the omicron variant will add fuel to the fire. in florida, it's considered a cautionary tale. by early august, the delta flooded hospitals. so many cities across the country are trying to get out in front of omicron, and new york city is mandating vaccine for all private sectors, and it's up to 3.6 million workers, and naturally you are going to see pushback, and we have already seen legal battles play out in the big apple for mandatory vaccines for teachers and workers, and we will have more information coming up on a cruise line outbreak with 17 cases linked to a norwegian cruise ship that left new orleans. more on that on "today." >>> researchers concluded fewer infections when more students were in class, in part because of the strict safe protocols in place. >>> from vaccines to variants, we continue our reporting online. head to nbcbayarea.com and you can

we have kerry sanders and sam brock in florida. welcome to you all. thank you for joining us.appreciate it. kerry, as we talk about some of those flight cancelations, you have a lot of people's travel plans over the holiday weekend up ended because you have crews testing positive for covid. i had a friend yesterday morning say they were on the way to the airport and then they learned the flight was canceled because of covid. what are you seeing? >> reporter: the story is really in the numbers. looking at the number of flight it is an are canceled andy layed right now. looking at the numbers right now delayed, 1,213 flights that are delayed. but 792 cancelations. that number continues to grow by the minute. and so if you're planning to go from point "a" to point "b" returning from family you want to make sure that you call the airline to check and then check online and prepare yourself for what is likely bad news why this is a result of the spread of coronavirus. among airline workers who are tested. if they test positive and omicron airport is spreading quickly. testing positi

but first, nbc's sam brock has his report >> reporter: with early data, pfizer is saying that its vaccine right now is effective at combating the omicron variant with that third shot or booster dose to keep protection a month out.th that against the back drop of rising cases nationally driven by delta with hospitals in a handful of states overwhelmed. new this morning, the nation's first real glimpse of the impact of omicron just a short time ago, pfizer releasing early data showing that getting a booster shot may be the key for battling the new variant. its data demonstrating protection against omicron one month after receiving the booster. it comes as a study on people who haven't received a booster, just the initial vaccine, is raising some concern a small study out of south africa finds the pfizer vaccine is less effective at neutralizing the omicron variant with a reduction of antibodies although the sample size was just 12 people and the study has not been peer reviewed this is the president's chief medical adviser, dr. anthony fauci offering a sliver of good news on omicron severit

nbc's sam brock has more on the life of a legend. sam?> reporter: good afternoon and good to be with you. if john madden's life was a book, there could be three distinct chapters, coaching, broadcasting and then pop culture icon and his impact on all of those things was his big as his personality. he never played as a professional football player because of a bad injury which was a incredible gift to the world. on the side lines as an nfl head coach. and for decades as a broadcaster. >> it is just super football. i love these kinds of games. >> reporter: john madden left a larger than life footprint on the nfl. >> he makes a twist there and pivot and boom the ball is there. >> reporter: with the winningest record in league history for any coach with 100 or more games, a super bowl ring with the then oakland raiders and madden-isms, madden teamed up with pat someral becoming one of the most beloved broadcasts in history. and later he shared with al mikeles and said he transcended the sport. >> a lot of it had to do with john traveling for