US defends Covid response as Omicron spikes amid testing woes

President Joe Biden and top health officials have defended the administration's response to the unrelenting pandemic as daily US Covid-19 cases reached a new high, largely fuelled by the highly contagious Omicron variant.

Biden, who has been accused of focusing on vaccinations at the expense of testing and support for struggling healthcare systems, told reporters on Tuesday he was "confident we're on the right track" to fight the pandemic.

The United States reported 1.35 million new coronavirus infections on Monday, according to a Reuters tally, the highest daily total for any country in the world. 

Omicron was estimated to account for 98.3 percent of total new coronavirus cases circulating in the country as of January 8, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said on Tuesday.

A closely watched projection from the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) at the University of Washington estimates that number is far higher due to the likelihood that many more infections go undetected, either because people are without symptoms or do not have access to testing.

As a result, the IHME model suggests that the US surge fuelled largely by Omicron may have already hit a daily peak of more than 6 million cases, and could drop significantly from that point by the end of this month. 

But disruptions to health systems, schools and businesses might not resolve quickly even as infections decrease.

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Testing problems

The heads of the Food and Drug Administration, the National Institutes of Health, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said the protracted battle against the virus has made clear the need for easier access to testing, better therapies and a vaccine more widely effective against a range of variants.

Janet Woodcock, the FDA's acting commissioner, acknowledged the agencies' challenges in dealing with the pandemic after two years, especially amid Omicron, but said the focus now needed to be on the current surge.
"I don't think prior approaches reflect what's going on right now. I think it's hard to process what's actually happening right now, which is most people are going to get Covid," she told a Senate committee hearing. 

"And what we need to do is make sure the hospitals can still function, transportation, other essential services are not disrupted while this happens. I think after that will be a good time to reassess how we're approaching this pandemic."

Dawn O'Connell, assistant Health and Human Services secretary for preparedness and response, said at the same hearing that the administration was working on shipping out the 500 million at-home Covid-19 tests ordered by Biden. 

The first batch goes out later this month and the rest in the next 60 days.

Democratic and Republican senators at the hearing lamented testing woes and other problems even as they vowed support for the agencies and the fight ahead, including the possibility of more funds.

READ MORE: Experts warn of 'viral blizzard' as Omicron rages in US

Glimmer of hope and blood crisis

The surge in cases and hospitalisations has forced Americans to cancel travel plans, shuttered entertainment venues, and scrambled plans for students and teachers to return to school and workers to go back to the office.

After nearly a month of rising Covid-19 case numbers in New York state, Governor Kathy Hochul said on Tuesday that the tide might be turning.

While daily new infections remain high with 48,686 new cases reported on Monday, Hochul said the downward trajectory offered a "glimmer of hope."

"Looks like we might be cresting over that peak," the governor said at a news conference.

The Red Cross declared a national blood crisis, with a 10 percent decline in the number of people donating blood. It noted the pandemic has led to blood drive cancellations and staffing limitations.

"Adding to the concern is the surge of Covid-19 cases," the Red Cross said. "The Red Cross has experienced low donor turnout ever since the Delta variant began spreading in August, and that trend continues as the Omicron variant takes over."

Dr. Rochelle Walensky, director of the CDC, said the country has the tools needed to fight the fast-spreading variant.

"We are working quickly to adapt to it," Walensky told the Senate Health, Labor, Education and Pensions Committee on Tuesday.

READ MORE: Biden warns Covid may 'overrun' some US hospitals