Protests against mandated COVID-19 vaccines pop up across US
Pushback is happening over vaccine requirements and mask mandates.
The United States is facing a COVID-19 surge this summer as the more contagious delta variant spreads.
More than 615,000 Americans have died from COVID-19 and over 4.2 million people have died worldwide, according to real-time data compiled by the Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins University.
Just 58.4% of Americans ages 12 and up are fully vaccinated against COVID-19, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The CDC last week, citing new science on the transmissibility of the delta variant, changed its mask guidance to now recommend everyone in areas with substantial or high levels of transmission -- vaccinated or not -- wear a face covering in public, indoor settings.
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Fully vaccinated people susceptible to 'long COVID': Fauci
Dr. Anthony Fauci is warning that fully vaccinated people are also susceptible to "long COVID" if they have a breakthrough infection.
"We already know that people who get breakthrough infections and don’t go on to get advanced disease requiring hospitalization, they too are susceptible to long COVID,” Fauci told McClatchy. "You’re not exempt from long COVID if you get a breakthrough infection."
As the delta variant surges, Fauci said, "there could be a variant that’s lingering out there that can push aside delta."
"If another one comes along that has an equally high capability of transmitting but also is much more severe, then we could really be in trouble," he said.
-ABC News’ Cheyenne Haslett
NY auto show canceled
The New York International Automobile Show, set to begin Aug. 20 in New York City, has been canceled due to the spread of the delta variant.
"All signs were positive" when planning began "but today is a different story," show organizers said.
Louisiana hospitalizations reach all-time high
Louisiana now has 2,247 COVID-19 patients in hospitals -- a new all-time high for the state.
This surpasses the previous record set Tuesday of 2,112 patients, the state's Department of Health said.
Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards has reinstated a mask mandate for the month of August.
The governor said Wednesday that he won't mandate vaccinations for state employees until the FDA grants full approval.
He said 37.1% of the Louisiana population is fully vaccinated.
The Offspring drummer says he's not playing at upcoming shows because he's unvaccinated
Pete Parada, the drummer for pop-punk band The Offspring, says he is not playing with the band at upcoming shows because he is unvaccinated.
Parada wrote on Instagram that he's avoiding the shot on his doctor’s advice, saying he’s had a lifelong battle with the rare neurological disorder Guillain-Barré syndrome and the vaccine's "risks far outweigh the benefits."
Because he's unvaccinated, "it has recently been decided that I am unsafe to be around, in the studio, and on tour," Parada said.
"I have no negative feelings towards my band," he continued. "They're doing what they believe is best for them, while I am doing the same."
-ABC News’ Evan McMurry
US 'may sooner or later get another variant' if spread not controlled: Fauci
Without control over the community spread of the delta variant, the virus has "ample opportunity to mutate," so "you may sooner or later get another variant," Dr. Anthony Fauci told "Good Morning America."
Fauci warned that it's possible a new "variant might be in some respects worse than the already very difficult variant we're dealing with now, which is a major reason why you want to completely suppress the circulation of the virus in the community."
There are still about 93 million eligible Americans who have not gotten vaccinated.
Fauci added, "People who say, 'I don't want to get vaccinated because it's me and I'll worry about me, I'm not having any impact on anybody else,' that's just not the case."
-ABC News’ Cheyenne Haslett