COVID-19 updates: Michigan, Minnesota, New Mexico leading nation in cases
Michigan has the highest infection rate, followed by Minnesota and New Mexico.
As the COVID-19 pandemic has swept the globe, more than 5.1 million people have died from the disease worldwide, including over 771,000 Americans, according to real-time data compiled by Johns Hopkins University's Center for Systems Science and Engineering.
Just 69% of Americans ages 12 and up are fully vaccinated against COVID-19, according to data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Latest headlines:
Fauci says 3-shot vaccine should be 'standard'
Dr. Anthony Fauci said Tuesday that booster doses may become the standard for a "full" vaccination.
"I happen to believe as an immunologist and infectious disease person that a third shot boost for an mRNA [vaccine] ... should be part of the actual standard regimen, where a booster isn't a luxury. A booster isn't an add-on and a booster is part of what the original regimen should be. So that when we look back on this, we're going to see that boosters are essential for an optimal vaccine regimen," Fauci said in a pretaped interview aired at the 2021 STAT Summit.
-ABC News' Sasha Pezenik
DC to lift indoor mask mandate on Monday, masks still required in White House
Washington, D.C., will lift its indoor mask mandate on Monday.
"Instead of following a blanket mandate, residents, visitors, and workers will be advised to follow risk-based guidance from DC Health that accounts for current health metrics and a person’s vaccination status," Mayor Muriel Bowser's office said in a statement
Private businesses can still require masks.
Masks will still be required in places including public transportation, schools, child care facilities and nursing homes.
The White House will still require masks indoors, a White House spokesman said, because D.C. has a "substantial" level of community transmission, according to the CDC.
"The White House follows CDC guidance which recommends masking in areas of high or substantial transmission," the spokesman, Kevin Munoz, told ABC News.-ABC News' Beatrice Peterson, Ben Gittleson
American Academy of Pediatrics updates guidance for testing in kids
The American Academy of Pediatrics has updated its testing guidance for children, aligning its recommendations with the CDC's for fully vaccinated individuals.
AAP now recommends that fully vaccinated people, who were in close contact with someone with COVID-19, should be tested five to seven days after the exposure. It is recommended that individuals who are not fully vaccinated be tested immediately after they learn of exposure. If they test negative, they should be tested again five to seven days after their last exposure, or immediately after symptoms develop.
The CDC already recommended that vaccinated people get tested five to seven days after exposure.
-ABC News' Arielle Mitropoulos, Sony Salzman
FDA may issue guidance on boosters for adults as soon as this week
The CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices will meet on Friday to discuss expanding booster eligibility for the Pfizer vaccine.
A government official confirmed to ABC News that the FDA may issue guidance on Pfizer and Moderna boosters for adults as soon as this week.
According to federal guidelines, boosters are currently available for: adults who received the Johnson & Johnson shot at least two months ago; Moderna/Pfizer recipients who are 65 and older and six months out from their second dose; and adult Moderna/Pfizer recipients who are six months out from the second dose and at higher risk because of a comorbidity, living or work environment.
But booster eligibility has already been expanded in some states this week, including New York and Arkansas.
-ABC News' Eric M. Strauss
New York governor calls on workers to go back to the office
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul is calling on workers to head back to the office in the new year.
"How about this New Year's resolution: that in the days after New Year’s, that we say everybody back in the office. You can have a flex time, but we need you back, at least the majority of the week," Hochul told industry leaders at the Association for a Better New York breakfast.
Hochul also said she would be in Times Square on New Year's Eve.
Times Square is reopening this New Year's Eve after being closed last year due to the pandemic. Revelers must bring proof of full vaccination and a photo ID.
"I can't wait to put 2020 - 2021 behind us," the governor said.
-ABC News' Aaron Katersky