Plummeting COVID-19 case counts across the United States are leading to lifted mask mandates and more conversations about steps toward normalcy — but more people are dying of the coronavirus now than during most points of the pandemic.

More than 2,000 COVID-19 deaths have been reported in the United States each day for the past month. Average daily deaths are falling, but from a very high point. They dipped just below that mark in recent days, to about 1,900 on Monday; the federal holiday may have delayed reporting.

Before omicron became the dominant coronavirus strain in the U.S., there were only about 100 other days when there were more than 2,000 COVID-19 deaths, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.

The only other time that deaths have been this high for this long was during the first winter surge, before vaccines were available. The omicron wave has also been deadlier for longer than the delta surge: In September, when delta was dominant, average daily deaths topped 2,000 for half as long.

More than 120,000 people in the U.S. have died of COVID-19 since omicron became the dominant variant in December, and COVID-19 has accounted for more than 1 in 5 deaths reported in 2022.

A common refrain early in the pandemic was that COVID-19 was most deadly for the elderly and people with certain health conditions. The people dying from COVID-19 now tend to be younger than before, and they're overwhelmingly unvaccinated, experts say.

"I've long since lost track of the number of people I've seen die of the disease, but the reality is that almost everybody who is critically ill, in the ICU or dying now remains unvaccinated. That has been true since the beginning. But in the beginning, people didn't have the opportunity to be vaccinated," said Dr. Stephen Threlkeld, medical director of the infectious diseases program at Baptist Memorial Health Care in Memphis.

"None of us taking care of COVID patients need CDC statistics or anyone else to tell us that, because we simply see that reality play out every day and have for quite some time."

But the data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is clear. In December, the risk of dying from COVID-19 was 14 times higher for unvaccinated adults than it was for adults who were fully vaccinated with their initial series. The gap was even larger when looking at those who also got their booster shot: 51 times higher.

Throughout the pandemic, the majority of COVID-19 deaths have happened in hospitals. But that share is even larger now, as nursing homes have become less of a hotspot. In 2020, more than 1 in 5 COVID-19 deaths was in a nursing home. But in 2022, fewer than 1 in 10 deaths have been in nursing homes, according to provisional data from the CDC.

Vaccination rates are higher among older people in the U.S., leaving a larger share of younger, unvaccinated people at higher risk for severe outcomes.

Nearly 90% of seniors 65 and older are fully vaccinated with their initial vaccine series, and about two-thirds of those eligible have gotten their booster shot. But less than two-thirds of adults under the age of 40 and less than a third of children are fully vaccinated.

And the vaccines are working. Seniors accounted for 81% of COVID-19 deaths in 2020, a number that dropped to 69% in 2021 and has stayed at 76% so far in 2022, despite the increased risk for breakthrough infection amid exponential community spread.

"The virus simply went to the fuel that it had remaining," Threlkeld said.

Racial disparities in COVID-19 deaths persist, but have decreased over time. Black, Hispanic and American Indian people are still about twice as likely to die of COVID-19 than white people, but that risk has fallen from about three times higher at the end of 2020.

And white people, who are less likely to be vaccinated than Hispanic people, have accounted for a growing share of deaths recently. An analysis by the Kaiser Family Foundation found that early in the omicron surge, the death rate for Hispanic people remained lower than the rate for white people, but death rates among Black people rose.

And as the virus spread rapidly throughout the country, social determinants of health have started to play a larger role in who becomes seriously ill and dies from COVID-19.

"Delta was much more deadly. But omicron is so widespread," said Dr. Faisal Masud, director of the critical care center at Houston Methodist.

Extremely high transmission rates mean the virus is reaching everyone, but it's hitting those from disadvantaged neighborhoods especially hard, he said. These are the people who are more likely to be uninsured and who may delay care, leaving chronic conditions such as diabetes and hypertension untreated.

"Patients who start with poor health come at a disadvantage," he said.

Texas has reported more COVID-19 deaths than any other state in the past week and is on track to soon outpace California in terms of total COVID-19 deaths. It's important to note the significant differences in health insurance rates and vaccination rates in the two states, Masud said. More than 70% of Californians are fully vaccinated, compared with about 60% of Texans, according to CDC data.

Overall, the proportion of omicron cases that have resulted in deaths appears to be lower than the case-mortality ratio for delta.

But it's a "denominator phenomenon," Threlkeld said, meaning a lower percentage of a much larger number is still going to be large.

"I think that's what people have forgotten: Just because something is a little less likely in a given person to cause severe disease, there are so many more people who've contracted this infection that you're going to have a lot of people who are ill," he said.

"We've certainly seen a lot of unvaccinated people who've done very poorly."

Employees at Walmart who are vaccinated are no longer required to wear a mask at work.

Walmart updated its COVID-19 policy for associates Friday.

In a memo obtained by CNN, the company announced that vaccinated workers will only need to wear a mask if it is required by the state or local government.

Workers who are not vaccinated and those who work in clinical care settings, including pharmacies, will be required to continue wearing face masks.

In addition to these policies, Walmart is also making changes to its sick pay policy.

Previously, associates received extra paid time off beyond sick leave if they tested positive for COVID-19.

Walmart is getting rid of this policy in March, except in places where it is required by the state or local government.

In addition, the retailer will no longer conduct daily health screenings in most places.

Screenings will continue in California, New York and Virginia, where they are required.

Policy changes at Walmart are now in effect.

Millions of children in America became eligible to receive the COVID-19 vaccine this week. And some officials are sweetening the deal by including them in various incentive programs.

In New York City, children can claim $100 if they get their first dose of Pfizer's vaccine at city-operated vaccine site. Alternatively, they can get tickets to city attractions such as the Statue of Liberty or the Brooklyn Cyclones baseball team. The incentive program was already available to other New Yorkers who got vaccinated.

"We really want kids to take advantage, families take advantage of that," Mayor Bill de Blasio said Thursday. "Everyone could use a little more money around the holidays. But, most importantly, we want our kids and our families to be safe."

In Chicago, health officials are also offering $100 gift cards for children ages five to 11 when they get the shots at Chicago Public Health events or clinics, officials said.

Plus, the Chicago school district — one of the largest in the nation — is closing on November 12 for Vaccination Awareness Day to make it easier for students to get their shots.

"It is rare that we make a late change to the school calendar, but we see this as an important investment in the future of this school year and the health and wellbeing of our students, staff, and families," Chicago Public Schools Chief Executive Officer Pedro Martinez said in a message to parents.

The perks come after the U.S. Centers for Diseases Control and Prevention on Tuesday cleared children as young as 5 for smaller vaccination doses, making most Americans eligible for the shots.

In Texas, San Antonio officials announced that parents and guardians who help their children get vaccinated at a public health clinic may claim a $100 gift card for H-E-B grocery stores. And in neighboring Louisiana, officials said the 5-11 age group could soon also claim $100.

In Minnesota, officials launched the "Kids Deserve a Shot" program intended to bolster vaccine numbers among those ages 12 and 17, officials said. The state is offering a $200 visa card as well as the opportunity to enter a raffle for a $100,000 college scholarship or a Minnesota experience prize package.

However, it's unclear if the various incentives will help bolster the vaccine numbers.

A study published last month in JAMA Health Forum found that incentive lotteries organized by 19 states did not seem to work.

However, the researchers speculated that lotteries may be less enticing than actual cash for vaccines.

A survey in May from the Kaiser Family Foundation found that 47% of people who say they want to "wait and see" before being vaccinated said paid time off to get it would make them more likely to do so, and 39% said a financial incentive of $200 from their employer would work.

Overall, the U.S. has fully vaccinated more than 58% of the total population as of Thursday, according to CDC data.

As the U.S. tries to bring COVID-19 under control before a potential winter spike, health experts are encouraging vulnerable people to get a booster vaccine dose. So far, about 15% of seniors have done so.

Overall, about 10.7 million people have received a booster shot — and more than half were people over 65, according to data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has recommended booster doses for people who are most vulnerable, including those 65 and older, those at high risk of severe disease and those who live or work in high-risk environments.

Pfizer was given emergency use authorization for a booster dose last month for certain people who are at least six months out from their initial two doses. And the nation's health advisers are now looking at approving EUA for Moderna and Johnson & Johnson boosters.

"(The extremely vulnerable) are recommended to get a booster shot," said CNN medical analyst Dr. Leana Wen. "But even with a booster, they might not prevent severe outcomes and this is the reason why we have to be vaccinated."

Strong immune protection from vaccination is the best way to stave off infection and control the pandemic. But the effort to increase protection with boosters is happening as the nation is still struggling to entice a substantial percentage of the population to be fully vaccinated.

Dr. Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, has said the vast majority of the U.S. will need to be vaccinated to control the spread of the virus, but that number is only now at around 57% of the total population.

On Monday, there was heightened focus on the importance of vaccinations after news that former Secretary of State Colin Powell had died due to COVID-19 complications.

Powell, 84, had multiple myeloma, a cancer of plasma cells that suppresses the body's immune response, as well as Parkinson's, Peggy Cifrino, Powell's longtime chief of staff, told CNN. He was fully vaccinated and was scheduled to get a booster dose this week, but his health condition put him at greater risk.

Powell's death should not be taken as a sign that the vaccines are insufficient, Wen said, but rather as evidence that more of the population needs to be vaccinated to protect those who are older and medically fragile.

"Yes, the vaccine does protect you, but it protects you even better is everyone around you is vaccinated," Wen said. "We get vaccinated as healthy people in part to protect the most vulnerable among us."

And breakthrough cases, like that of Powell, are rare but expected, as no vaccine is 100% effective.

A total of 7,178 breakthrough cases that have resulted in death have been reported to the CDC through Oct. 12. By that time, more than 187 million people in the U.S. were fully vaccinated. That's one out of every 26,000 fully vaccinated people that has died of COVID-19, or 0.004%.

Of those breakthrough cases resulting in death, 85% were among people age 65 and older and 57% were among men, according to the CDC.

For those looking to strengthen their immune response with a booster dose, mixing and matching vaccines may soon become an option.

People familiar with the FDA's planning told the New York Times the agency is planning to allow people to receive a different COVID-19 vaccine as a booster shot than the one they initially received.

According to the Times, the FDA might note that getting the same vaccine as a booster is preferable, but it would not recommend one shot over the other.

New Mexico under crisis standards of care

COVID-19 hospitalizations have been on the decline nationally, but some regions are still overwhelmed.

Seven states have less than 15% of ICU beds available, according to data from the Department of Health and Human Services. Those states are Alabama, Georgia, Idaho, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma and Texas.

In New Mexico, the department of health has had to enact crisis standards of care.

According to a press release from the NMDH, hospitals will now have to temporarily suspend non-medically necessary procedures before having to decide who should receive care.

"Because of COVID, New Mexico hospitals and health care facilities have carried an unmanageable burden. Today, the state is offering clarity and support as providers seek to make difficult choices about how to allocate scarce -- and precious -- health care resources," said DOH Acting Secretary David R. Scrase, M.D. "The goals, as always, remain the same: to save as many New Mexican lives as possible, and to help sustain the health care providers who have sustained our communities throughout this entire pandemic."

On Monday, state health officials announced 1,895 new cases bringing the total number of cases in the state since the pandemic began to 265,632. There are currently 300 patients in the hospital being treated for COVID-19.

Vaccine mandates implemented for police departments

To increase vaccinations — and, in turn, control spread — many employers have begun mandating vaccinations for their employees.

In Washington state, members of Seattle's police department had until the end of Monday to be vaccinated or receive an exemption.

As of Monday night, 91% of the police force had shown proof of vaccination and 7% presented exemptions, leaving only 2% of the department having not submitted their vaccination status.

"For officers who haven't turned in any verification paperwork by midnight tonight, they are not to report for work tomorrow and the City and department will begin the process for termination for failing to follow the vaccine mandate guidelines," SPD spokesperson Randy Huserik told CNN.

The state has also implemented vaccine mandates for state employees, and some are choosing to leave their jobs instead of complying.

In videos uploaded by a YouTube conservative radio host in the Seattle area, two state troopers were among those state employees citing Governor Jay Inslee's vaccination mandate as the reason for their leave.

One of them, 17-year veteran Sgt. Richard Thompson, can be seen inside his patrol car signing off from his duties and saying, "Due to my personal choice to take a moral stand against, for medical freedom and personal choice, I will be signing out of service for the last time today."

Separately, Washington State University announced that head football coach Nick Rolovich, as well as assistant football coaches Ricky Logo, John Richardson, Craig Stutzmann and Mark Weber, are no longer able to coach because of not complying with the state's vaccine mandate.

Michael Jordan backs the NBA’s COVID-19 vaccine protocols.

The NBA does not require players to receive the vaccine. However, unvaccinated players will not be paid if they miss a game due to local vaccine mandates.

"I am total in unison with the league," 58-year-old Jordan said on NBC’s Today.

Jordan, who now owns the Charlotte Hornets, added that he is a firm believer in science.

“I'm going to stick with that and hopefully, everybody abides by whatever the league sets the rules,” Jordan said.

The Charlotte Hornets are 100% vaccinated, according to The Associated Press.

The former NBA star’s comments come as some high-profile athletes have expressed reluctance to get vaccinated.

On Tuesday, the Brooklyn Nets announced that Kyrie Irving won’t be allowed to play or practice with the team until he’s vaccinated.

Some governors are beginning to report encouraging signs in their state's COVID-19 numbers, but warn of what could come next if more people don't get vaccinated.

COVID-19 hospitalizations and ICU utilization have decreased over the past week in Kentucky, Gov. Andy Beshear announced at a Thursday news conference.

"We are in a decline and we hope it continues for people hospitalized because of COVID," the governor said.

"This is more people getting vaccinated. This is more people wearing their masks. Keep it up," Beshear added, warning COVID-19 hospitalization and ICU numbers in the state are still very high and could tick back up.

Also Thursday, Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan announced the state's COVID-19 positivity rate has dropped 20% in the past month and hospitalizations are down 60% from their peak. On the same day, Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp said that while the state has seen a "significant decline in cases, hospitalizations and percent positive tests" in the past weeks, there could be another surge soon.

"Today, I want to emphasize the importance of not waiting until the next wave of COVID cases to get vaccinated," Kemp said. "Given that our increase in cases and hospitalizations in 2021 were similar in timing to surges seen in 2020, we can only assume that a winter increase is also possible."

Across the U.S., the rate of new COVID-19 deaths is expected to decrease over the next four weeks, according to an ensemble forecast from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. And for the third week in a row, Wednesday's CDC forecast predicted hospitalizations will decrease as well — a bit of hope as the more transmissible Delta variant continues to spread.

But currently, an average of nearly 2,000 people die and about 114,000 people are infected with COVID-19 every day, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.

"We're going to lose a bunch more people," West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice said at a news briefing Wednesday. "All I can possibly do, with a good conscience, is continue to urge you, in every way, to get vaccinated."

Roughly 55.5% of the U.S. population is fully vaccinated, according to the CDC. Health experts can't say for sure what proportion of the population would need to be vaccinated to control the spread, but Dr. Anthony Fauci estimates that it would have to be the "vast majority."

Officials and experts are employing multiple strategies to try to increase vaccination protection.

Schools, businesses and employers have implemented mandates for students and employees to be vaccinated against the virus. And the FDA has authorized booster doses to increase vaccine protection for vulnerable populations.

About a third of parents say they'd vaccinate kids ages 5-11 right away, poll finds

Meanwhile, a slightly increasing proportion of parents may be open to children ages 5-11 getting a COVID-19 vaccine as soon as one is available to them, according to a new Kaiser Family Foundation poll.

No COVID-19 vaccine is yet authorized for ages under 12 in the U.S. But both Pfizer and Moderna have been testing various doses of their COVID-19 vaccines in children under 12, and health experts have said one could be authorized for ages 5-11 later this fall if multiple federal agencies sign off.

In a Kaiser poll published Thursday, about 34% parents of children 5-11 said they would vaccinate their child as soon as a COVID-19 vaccine became available for that age group.

That's up from 26% who said the same thing in a July poll, the foundation said. About 32% of September's respondents said they would wait to see how the vaccine was working, against 40% who said the same thing in July.

The percentage of parents saying they definitely wouldn't seek the vaccine for their child this age group, however, has barely moved. About 24% of respondents said this in September, versus 25% in July, Kaiser said.

About 7% in September said they'd allow their child to get the vaccine only if required, against 9% who said the same in July.

Kaiser noted that the bulk of the interviews for September's poll happened before Pfizer announced on Sept. 20 that its COVID-19 vaccine was safe and generated a "robust" antibody response in children ages 5-11. Pfizer is now submitting that data to the FDA ahead of anticipated attempt to seek the agency's authorization for vaccinating this age group.

The latest Kaiser poll was conducted Sept. 13-22.

Vaccine deadline in effect for California health care workers

On the local and federal level, officials are implementing vaccination mandates to increase protection.

In California, Sept. 30 was the deadline for health care facility workers to complete a COVID-19 vaccination series — unless they receive an exemption — to keep working.

The deadline included anyone who works at a health care facility, including hospitals, long- and intermediate-care facilities and doctor offices and clinics.

Under an order issued Aug. 5, the state health department ordered workers to have a second dose of a two-dose mRNA COVID-19 vaccine, or a single shot of the one-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine, by Sept. 30.

The order allowed workers to ask for exemptions based on religious beliefs or qualifying medical reasons. Anyone granted an exemption was required to submit to regular COVID-19 testing: Twice a week for workers in acute health care and long-term care settings, and once weekly for workers in other health care settings.

Earlier this month, President Joe Biden announced stringent new vaccine rules on federal workers, large employers and health care staff in a sweeping attempt to contain COVID-19.

He directed the Labor Department to require all businesses with 100 or more employees ensure their workers are either vaccinated or tested once a week. Companies could face thousands of dollars in fines per employee if they don't comply.

Biden also said he would require the 17 million health care workers at facilities receiving funds from Medicare and Medicaid to be fully vaccinated, expanding the mandate to hospitals, home care facilities and dialysis centers around the country.

Those requirements are still weeks away from being implemented, but employers should expect them to come this year, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Wednesday.

New York state ordered staff at hospitals and long-term care facilities to receive at least one COVID-19 vaccine dose by last week, unless they received exemptions for medical or religious reasons. Some employees are already facing the consequences of not complying.

The St. Barnabas Hospital Health System had 58 employees who failed to show proof of vaccination as of Wednesday, spokesman Steve Clark said. The employees were suspended and have until Monday morning to show proof of vaccination. If they don't, they'll be terminated, Clark said.

"Patient care has not been compromised at all," Clark said. "Schedules have been created accordingly. People will work overtime, or part-timers or agency personnel will be brought in when necessary."

No health care facility in the state has closed as a result of any staffing shortages resulting from people not complying with the vaccine requirements, Gov. Kathy Hochul said Thursday.

As of Monday evening, 92% of nursing home staff, 89% of adult care facilities staff, and 92% of hospital staff had received at least one COVID-19 vaccine dose, the governor's office said.

New York officials are looking into expanding the vaccine requirement to health care workers at facilities that are not regulated state health department, such as prisons, Hochul said.

The Biden administration is rolling out new international travel policies affecting Americans and noncitizens alike who want to fly into the U.S. The goal is to restore more normal air travel after 18 months of disruption caused by COVID-19.

The across-the-board rules, which will take effect in November, will replace a hodgepodge of confusing restrictions. Some details of the plan announced Monday are being worked out, but here are some questions and answers about what to expect:

What is the new policy in a nutshell?

All adult foreign nationals traveling to the U.S. will be required to be fully vaccinated before boarding their flight. This is in addition to the current requirement that travelers show proof of a negative COVID-19 test taken within 72 hours of departure to the U.S.

Once the vaccination requirement is put in place, the White House will ease all the country-specific restrictions on international travel that have prevented non-citizens who have been in the United Kingdom, European Union, China, India, Iran, Republic of Ireland, Brazil or South Africa in the prior 14 days from entering the U.S.

How does this affect Americans?

Fully vaccinated Americans will only need to show proof of a negative COVID-19 test taken within 72 hours of departure to the U.S.

What about unvaccinated Americans?

U.S. citizens and permanent residents who are not fully vaccinated will still be able to fly to the U.S., but they will see tougher testing and contact tracing protocols. They will need to be tested within 24 hours of boarding a flight to the U.S., as well as undergo testing upon return to the country. It remains to be seen, though, how the federal government will enforce the testing requirement upon return.

How does this affect children?

The new U.S. policy only requires adult foreign nationals to be fully vaccinated in order to enter the U.S. The White House did not immediately say whether unvaccinated children will face different testing protocols when flying into the country.

Which vaccines are acceptable?

The CDC says the U.S. will accept full vaccination of travelers with any COVID-19 vaccine approved for emergency use by the World Health Organization, including those from Pfizer, Moderna and Johnson & Johnson used in the U.S. Other vaccines are also approved by the WHO and used widely around the world, including from AstraZeneca and China’s Sinovac, with varying degrees of effectiveness against COVID-19 and its more transmissible delta variant. The WHO is reviewing Russia’s Sputnik V vaccine but hasn’t approved it.

How will this affect air fare?

Adit Damodaran, economist for the travel-research firm Hopper, predicted that growing demand is likely to cause higher airfares on flights from Europe, although the rush to book flights could be slowed by the delta variant and high COVID-19 rates in the U.S. If fares rise, it would mark a turnaround in prices since the start of the pandemic.

Will airlines collect data on passengers?

The CDC will require airlines to collect information about passengers and provide it to the health agency if it needs to conduct contact tracing. The airlines had resisted a similar change last year when it was proposed by the CDC and eventually blocked by the Trump administration.

What about travel over land borders?

The administration's restrictions on crossing land borders from Mexico and Canada into the U.S. are to remain unchanged for now. That means that in some cases fully vaccinated people from the two American neighbors will soon be able fly to the U.S., but may not be able to make the same journey by car.

How will this affect the travel industry?

Analysts and industry officials think it will help. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce said lifting the current restrictions on international travelers will contribute to a durable recovery for the U.S. economy. Before Monday, the U.S. was on pace to lose $175 billion in export income from international visitors this year, according to the U.S. Travel Association.

How have the current restrictions affected international travel?

They have made it easier for Americans to visit Europe than the other way around. U.S. international travel in August was down 54% compared with two years ago, and arrivals by non-U.S. citizens were off 74%, according to Airlines for America.

How will the changes affect business travel?

There is pent-up demand among business travelers from Europe. Foreign executives who have been vaccinated will no longer have to prove that their travel to the United States serves the U.S. "national interest" — a time-consuming process.

___

Koenig reported from Dallas. Associated Press writer Mike Stobbe in New York contributed to this report.

Video above: Do breakthrough cases of COVID-19 mean vaccines don't work?

Jacqueline Jackson, the wife of civil rights leader Rev. Jesse Jackson, was released from a Chicago hospital Friday as she recovers from COVID-19.

Her husband remains hospitalized at a rehab facility, the family said in a statement.

"Our mother is leaving the Northwestern Memorial Hospital and coming home," Jackson's son Jonathan said in a written statement. "Our family is grateful to God and the medical team that treated her and that is allowing her body to continue to heal from the Covid-19 virus."

A family spokesperson confirmed to CNN on Friday night that Jacqueline Jackson, 77, had arrived at home.

"Our father remains at The Shirley Ryan AbilityLab where he is continuing to receive intensive occupational and physical therapy," Jonathan Jackson said. "We urge all who have not yet been vaccinated for the COVID-19 virus to do so immediately."

The couple was hospitalized last month at Northwestern Memorial in Chicago. The reverend, 79, was subsequently transferred to a rehab hospital to focus on treatment for his Parkinson's disease.

Jackson received his first COVID-19 vaccine dose in January at an event to promote African American confidence in vaccinations, according to a statement at the time from the Rainbow PUSH Coalition.

Due to the more dangerous nature of the delta variant, breakthrough infections for those who are vaccinated have been reported, largely among those who are older or immunocompromised.

Although Jackson was vaccinated against the virus, he previously told The Associated Press that his wife had not been vaccinated because she has a "preexisting condition" that worried them.

In February, the civil rights leader underwent successful surgery after being hospitalized for abdominal discomfort. In 2017, he was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease, a neurological disorder with no cure.

Vaccination rates in America vary widely between blue and red states, between urban and rural populations and between those with college degrees and those without.

But perhaps no demographic factor shows as stark of a difference as age.

Nearly 92% of adults over 65 have had at least one vaccine dose and over 81% are fully vaccinated, higher than any other age group, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Younger age groups have much lower vaccination rates, dragging down the country's overall coverage by 20 percentage points. Among people 12 and older, 71% have had at least one dose and 60% are fully vaccinated, the CDC says.

The vaccine rate could still be higher for the elderly. The New York Times reported Tuesday that seniors in other wealthy countries have higher vaccination rates than in the United States.

Still, the vaccination differences by age groups are clear even in less-vaccinated parts of the country. In Alabama, one of the country's least vaccinated states, 71% of people over 65 are fully vaccinated — the same rate as for all adults in New York. No matter the location, older people understand the importance of vaccination.

So why exactly are older adults so much more vaccinated than younger folks?

Interviews with several doctors, CDC data and polling from the Kaiser Family Foundation show five main reasons for the age difference: their earlier eligibility, the virus's exponentially more severe impact on older people, their wiser perspective on life, their increased access to the medical system due to Medicare, and their functional immunity to vaccine misinformation.

Understanding these factors could help the U.S. home in on ways to better encourage vaccination among younger people, whose general resistance to vaccination threatens to extend the pain of the pandemic for everyone, as the delta wave has shown.

Dr. Tim Farrell, the chair of the American Geriatrics Society's Ethics Committee and professor of medicine at the University of Utah School of Medicine, said young people should get vaccinated as a form of "inter-generational justice" for older people.

"What do the young owe the old? What do the old owe the young?" he asked CNN. "The older adults were the ones who were sitting home, and a lot of them were isolated for a year or more. They stayed home, they got vaccinated, they did their fair share. I think it's time for some reciprocation."

Older people were eligible earlier

A key explanation is time. People over age 65 became eligible to be vaccinated at earlier dates, so they have had more time to get vaccinated.

In December, when the vaccine supply was limited, vaccine advisers to the CDC recommended that health care workers and residents of long-term care facilities get top priority. People age 75 and older and frontline essential workers were next in line, and people 65 to 75, high-risk people age 16 to 64 and other frontline workers came after that.

Not every state followed that exact order. But across the U.S., older people were able to get vaccinated this past winter, while many younger adults had to wait until spring. Children age 12 to 15 only became eligible to be vaccinated in May. There are no vaccine shortages in the U.S., and everyone 12 and older is eligible to be vaccinated.

Not everything can be explained by this timeline, though, and the uptick among younger age groups has been slower, according to CDC data.

In one clear example, three months after the vaccines first started going into arms — on March 16 — 62% of people 65 to 74 and 66% of people 75 and up had at least one dose, CDC data shows. By comparison, three months after 12 to 15 year-olds became eligible — on Aug. 12 — just 48% had at least one dose.

Still, the data shows that the longer an age group has been eligible, the more of them are vaccinated.

Older people are at much higher risk of severe COVID-19

A second major explanation is that older people are more willing to get vaccinated because they are at far higher risk.

The devastating impact of COVID-19 on the elderly has been clear ever since the novel coronavirus tore through a Washington state nursing home in February and March 2020.

The 18 months since then have further confirmed its impact. People over 65 make up only 13% of all Covid-19 cases but account for about 80% of all deaths, according to CDC data. And the risk goes up even more the older people get. Those over 85 years old make up just 2.1% of all COVID-19 cases but 30.6% of all deaths.

"The mortality is basically exponential when you get past age 65. It just increases so substantially," Farrell said. "My patients are well aware of that."

For younger people, the risk of severe COVID-19 illness and death is comparatively much lower, so vaccination is less of a clear life-or-death situation.

But lower risk does not mean no risk. More than 100,000 people under age 65 have died from COVID-19, far more than the annual flu or any other viral infection. And that doesn't take into account those dealing with long-haul Covid symptoms and long-term respiratory issues.

"People didn't understand that something like 0.5 to 1% death rate is still really high. That still means thousands of people dying," said Dr. Peter Hotez, dean for the National School of Tropical Medicine at the Baylor College of Medicine.

Older people know from experience and perspective

Another reason older adults are more vaccinated stems from their personal experiences with vaccines. They remember the days when infectious diseases like polio and measles sickened and killed classmates, friends and family members.

Farrell saw this firsthand. Earlier in the pandemic, a patient pulled out a decades-old polio vaccine card that showed the patient had been a volunteer in a polio vaccine trial.

"I think that really speaks to how proud he was at that time to be participating in a trial, advancing science, helping contribute to the solution rather than be part of problem. I think that sort of spirit is still alive and well in a lot of patients," Farrell said. "Anecdotally, it seems like most of my patients are very happy to take the vaccine, and I think part of it is what they've lived through and their experience having done this before."

Younger Americans, meanwhile, have grown up in an era in which polio has been eliminated and serious infectious diseases are relatively rare due to widespread vaccinations. And with the confidence of youth, they are more likely to believe they will be just fine even if they do get infected.

Indeed, the perception of risk is a major explanation of why some people are less likely to be vaccinated, according to polling from the Kaiser Family Foundation.

"Unvaccinated adults, especially those who say they will 'definitely not' get a vaccine, are more likely to say they are not worried they personally will get seriously sick from the coronavirus and to believe that getting the vaccine is a bigger risk to their own health than getting the virus," KFF found in July.

"(Older adults) are more mindful of their mortality and their risk, and perhaps there's a sense among younger cohorts that 'I'm young so I'll be fine,'" Farrell said.

Access to the medical system

Even though the COVID-19 vaccines are all free, having health insurance is correlated with higher vaccination rates — and most Americans over 65 are eligible for insurance through Medicare.

The differences between the uninsured and the insured is stark. A KFF poll from July found that among uninsured people under age 65, only 44% have received at least one dose of a vaccine. For people under 65 with health insurance, about 65% have received at least one dose.

The underlying idea is that people with health insurance, no matter the age, have access to the medical system. They are more able to get preventative care and more likely to have a personal doctor or health care professional they trust.

"Even though you don't have to have insurance to get vaccinated, it's kind of a marker of your attentiveness to the health system and how well you're plugged into it," Hotez said.

Medicare beneficiaries also have the right to free annual wellness visits, as do most other people covered by federally qualified health insurance plans. Farrell said he uses these to discuss broader health issues rather than acute problems.

"What this enables patients to do is to take a step back and look a little more comprehensively at their health," he said. "(They can) be less concerned about cost and more concerned about engaging and taking a deeper dive into preventative care."

That access to physicians also enables closer trust in the opinions of medical experts.

"One of the most important factors in getting people vaccinated is just that they trust their physician, and that longitudinal relationship is incredibly important," Farrell said.

Misinformation is targeted at young people

Finally, the anti-vaccine misinformation that has proliferated in this pandemic has generally not targeted the fears of older adults.

In particular, one of the most common fears of getting vaccinated is the false idea that the vaccines impact fertility. It's a claim that has been around for years, according to vaccine expert and pediatrician Dr. Yvonne Maldonado.

"Oh my goodness, people have been saying this about every vaccine since I can remember," Maldonado, the chief of Stanford University School of Medicine's division of pediatric infectious diseases, told CNN in May. "There is no evidence that this vaccine will affect development or fertility."

Indeed, the CDC recently strengthened its recommendation that people who are pregnant, breastfeeding or trying to get pregnant should all get vaccinated, saying the vaccine is safe and effective.

"There is currently no evidence that any vaccines, including Covid-19 vaccines, cause fertility problems in women or men," the CDC says on its website.

Fertility is generally less common of a concern for people over 65, as it naturally declines with age.

For younger people, these false fertility claims have proven effective. Among unvaccinated people who want to "wait and see" before getting vaccinated, 44% say they are concerned the vaccine may negatively impact their fertility, according to a KFF study. Among unvaccinated people who will "definitely not" get vaccinated, 66% say they're concerned about fertility.

Hotez, who has long been a target of anti-vaxxers, said the anti-vaccine talking points for COVID-19 are directly taken from other anti-vaccine language, which is generally targeted at parents who are in charge of their children's vaccinations.

"Most of the anti-science, anti-vaccine aggression and disinformation was specifically targeting young adults and their kids," he said. "That's where the messaging was directed at and that's why you see the vaccine uptake so low."

Fear of side effects is not as big of a deal, and Farrell noted that some of his patients cited the famous, though perhaps outdated, quote from the late actress Bette Davis: "Old age ain't no place for sissies."

"They're used to some aches and pains," Farrell said. "They are seasoned patients who have seen this before, at least in a different way, and for many patients ... They just can roll with it. They're like, 'In the grand scheme of things, this is a pretty minor annoyance at most for the large benefit we're going to receive.'"

Video above: Oregon to require school employee vaccinations

With an alarming rise in COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations, more Americans have recently made the decision to get vaccinated than in the last six weeks.

More than 1 million doses of the vaccine were reported administered Thursday, new U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data showed, marking the first time since early July for the single-day change in reported doses. The average pace of those initiating vaccination is more than 70% higher than one month ago.

Oklahoma and Louisiana — two states that have lagged the rest of the nation in vaccinations — are now outpacing the national average, White House COVID-19 Response Team Chief of Staff Asma Mirza said in calls with local faith leaders Thursday.

"We're seeing a new willingness, a new openness to getting vaccinated," she said in a discussion with Louisiana faith leaders.

The boost in vaccinations, however, comes as more health care systems are reporting an increasingly dire situation, with an influx of patients flooding waiting rooms due largely to the spread of the more infectious delta variant.

And because it takes weeks to gain immunity following full vaccination, even those beginning their inoculations need to remain cautious against infection.

Dr. Robert Jansen, chief medical officer at one of Atlanta's largest trauma centers, Grady Health System, said it was seeing a "tsunami of patients coming into the emergency department."

The situation is also critical in Texas, where Gov. Greg Abbott announced the state will deploy additional medical personnel to hospitals across the state.

Lauren Meyers, director of the University of Texas COVID-19 Modeling Consortium, warned that hospitals are at a "breaking point."

"We are sort of in a very dire situation in Austin," Meyers said.

The rate of hospitalizations is still below pandemic highs seen in January, CDC data shows. But at the current pace — an average of more than 11,000 new hospital admissions for COVID-19 over the past week — the U.S. might reach a record high within a month, the CDC said.

Preventative vaccinations are the most effective means to combat COVID-19 infections, and the Food and Drug Administration will likely approve the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine around the end of August, former FDA Commissioner Dr. Mark McClellan said Thursday. Current vaccines have been granted emergency use authorization.

"I think that approval, at least for the Pfizer vaccine, is going to come very soon -- probably by the end of the month or right around there," McClellan told CNN.

Booster shots for those inoculated are expected to be made widely available by Sept. 20, and about 75% of the eligible population will have received at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccine at current vaccination rates, according to a CNN analysis of CDC data.

Around 51.1% of the total U.S. population is fully vaccinated, according to the CDC.

Vaccine requirements beginning to take shape

With the efficacy of vaccines continuously proven in keeping recipients out of hospitals, more jurisdictions nationwide are taking steps requiring employees to be inoculated, barring medical or religious exemptions.

Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker issued an executive order Thursday that will require approximately 42,000 executive department employees to provide proof of vaccination by mid-October or face possible termination, according to a spokesperson.

In New Orleans, all city employees and public-facing personnel will need to submit proof of vaccination or receive routine Covid-19 testing starting Aug. 30, according to Mayor LaToya Cantrell.

The mayor's office said the additional step was taken "to protect residents, City employees and public-facing contracted personnel from the COVID-19 outbreak, and more recently the Delta variant outbreak in Orleans Parish."

In Oregon, all K-12 teachers, educators, staff and volunteers at schools — both public and private — will need to be fully vaccinated for COVID-19 by Oct. 18 or six weeks after full FDA approval, Gov. Kate Brown announced at a press conference Thursday.

Brown's announcement came as the chief physician executive at St. Charles Hospital, in Bend, Oregon, said hospitals are in crisis.

"Our frontline health care workers that have been caring for patients every day are exhausted," Dr. Jeff Absalon said. "They're burned out. And we're in a pandemic that many of us regard as largely preventable."

Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, told CNN Thursday that vaccine requirements at schools is a sound strategy to create a safe environment.

"One of the most important ways is to surround the children with people who are vaccinated, if they're eligible to be vaccinated — and that means teachers and personnel in the school," Fauci said.

'This is not an adult disease anymore'

With schools back in session, local officials are faced with deciding whether to mandate masks in classrooms, plus the day-to-day challenges of quarantining students exposed to COVID-19.

Legal battles over mask mandates continued Thursday in Texas, as the state Supreme Court refused Gov. Abbott's request to quickly intervene over some local jurisdictions' decision to require masks in schools.

Dr. Sara Cross, a member of the COVID-19 task force for Tennessee's governor and an infectious disease specialist at the University of Tennessee, said bans on mask mandates would have "catastrophic consequences" for those in classrooms.

"When one child doesn't wear a mask, it doesn't only affect that child. It affects the entire classroom. It affects teachers. We just had a teacher in the Memphis area, a 31-year-old woman, die of Covid in the past few days from acquiring it in the classroom," Cross told CNN on Thursday.

"We can't handle what we're seeing. We are estimating that the number of cases in Tennessee will increase six-fold by the end of September if we don't take measures to mitigate the spread," Cross said.

"This is not an adult disease anymore," Cross said, saying the pediatric hospital in downtown Memphis "currently has at least 9 children in the ICU from COVID-19."

At least 15 states have temporarily or indefinitely required K-12 students to wear masks in schools, according to a CNN analysis, with some provided exceptions: California, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Virginia and Washington.

A New Orleans family breathed a huge sigh of relief just one day after their patriarch Erroll Windon was released from a hospital in Baton Rouge, following a hard battle with COVID-19.

Windon is a COVID-19 breakthrough case. The 71-year-old is fully vaccinated and spent about 10 days inside of the hospital.

"We feel that the vaccine coupled with his faith, our faith, and prayer gave him a fighting chance," said Stacey Windon-Matthews, Erroll Windon's daughter.

Erroll explained his condition when first arriving at the hospital.

"When I first got here, the oxygen was not working. They had to move me to ICU," Erroll Windon said.

Members of Erroll's family said he has high blood pressure and is borderline diabetic.

"They said you will probably have to go on a ventilator. I said, 'No doc I want to talk to my wife.' He said, 'Call her right now,'" Erroll said.

For his entire family, along with his daughter Stacey and son-in-law Kenneth, the hope was always that he would pull through.

"When I heard, it made my heart drop. But deep in my heart, I felt this vaccine will give him a fighting chance," Stacey said.

Erroll's grandson, Kenneth Matthews III, had a message played to his grandfather while still in grave condition.

Stacey said, "He sent it to my dad. And four hours later, he got out of ICU."

The couple said it was the prayer of their son and prayers from hundreds of people around the country that helped Erroll recover. Another huge help was that Erroll was vaccinated.

In fact, Erroll said doctors told him it was the vaccine that kept him alive.

"He said, 'That vaccine kept you alive. It was fighting for you,'" Erroll said.

"If it were not for that vaccine, he would not have made it at the age of 71 with underlying health conditions," Stacey said.

After witnessing part of the horror of COVID-19, the family has a message for those still on the fence about taking the shot.

"People take the flu shot and all of these other shots. We do not know what is in them but they help. If you can get vaccinated, which is really easy now. Do it. It saved my father-in-law and I feel it gives me a sense of protection," said Kenneth Matthews Junior, Erroll's son-in-law.

Erroll and his family wanted to thank all of the health care heroes that helped him and continue to help him on his journey to full recovery, including his own son-in-law and daughter-in-law who is a nurse at the very overwhelmed hospital where he was admitted.

Do I need to take precautions at hotels if I’m vaccinated?

Most people won’t need to, but it depends on your situation.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says the risk of COVID-19 is low if you're fully vaccinated, and that you can resume indoor and outdoor activities without wearing a mask or social distancing.

But if you have health issues, the CDC says to talk to your doctor about the need to continue taking precautions. Parents of young children may also want to be more careful until their kids are vaccinated. Guidance might vary by country as well, depending on local vaccination and infection rates.

"Hotels are safe, but I think there are individual personal factors that may sway you one way or another," says Dr. Soniya Gandhi, associate chief medical officer at Cedars-Sinai Marina del Rey Hospital.

To help you decide your comfort level, Gandhi suggests looking at infection and vaccination rates in the place you’re visiting. If cases are low, you should feel more confident about activities that could put you in close contact with others, like dining at a hotel restaurant or using the gym.

Most U.S. hotel chains took measures during the pandemic to reduce the risk of infections, and those changes remain in effect. Many hotels offer contactless check-in, prepackaged breakfast items instead of open buffets and more frequent cleaning of common areas.

Some hotels and inns, including the MGM Resort chain, have also upgraded their air filtration systems and even added individual air purifiers to some guest rooms.

If you're concerned, call ahead to see what protocols the hotel has in place.

Marriott, Hyatt, IHG Hotels & Resorts and other hotel operators have removed mask mandates for fully vaccinated guests at their U.S. hotels. Hilton’s mask rules vary by location, but employees are still required to wear masks.

FRANKFORT, Ky. (LEX 18) — On Thursday, Patricia Short of Lexington was asked to come to the Capitol because the governor wanted to personally speak with her. She didn't know that her life would change that day.

"Congratulations," Governor Andy Beshear said as Short walked into his office.

Cameras captured the moment Short saw the million-dollar check in Beshear's hands. On it, it had her name.

On Friday, Short's win was announced to the public.

"I did it. It happened," said Short. "It's real."

Short couldn't help but smile during the announcement, and understandably so. The pandemic was tough on Short and her husband, Gary.

On January 15, 2021, Short told LEX 18 about their struggles.

"My first phone call was made in July," Short said as she explained the trouble she was having navigating the state's unemployment system. "I was put in the queue and no one's ever called me back."

Short said without unemployment, she and her husband could not afford a place of their own. They ended up living on a friend's floor.

"My husband is a heart patient," Short said in January. "The one thing he's not supposed to do is deal with stress. Our life is nothing but stress."

About six months after that teary interview, Short's name was drawn in the Shot-at-a-Million contest. She was walking away with one million dollars before taxes.

"I'm still numb," Short said on Friday. "Y'all get vaccinated. That's the important thing. Then, you can register, and you can win this too."

“This happens in the movies, and now it happens in Kentucky," said Short's husband, Gary. "I hope it makes 1 million more people get vaccinated.”

Short was not the only winner this week. These five teens/preteens also won a full college scholarship:

• Jalen Crudup from Elizabethtown
• Crystal Frost from Crestwood
• Tyler Henson from Mt. Sterling
• Adison Sullenger from Princeton
• Alex VonderHaar from Louisville

"I feel so lucky. And all I did was get vaccinated," said Frost. "I thought it was a smart decision and clearly, it really paid off."

Vaccinated Kentuckians still have two more chances to become millionaires or scholarship winners. The next drawings will take place July 29 and August 26. Those who did not win in the first drawing remain eligible for the final two drawings.

Vaccinated Kentuckians still have two more chances to become millionaires or scholarship winners. Since the deadline to enter the first drawing on Wednesday, more than 35,000 Kentuckians have entered for the next two drawings.

The remaining incentive drawings will take place July 29 and Aug. 26, with one millionaire and five scholarship recipients, announced the day following each drawing. Those who did not win in the first drawing remain eligible for the final two drawings.

Beshear said more than 121,000 Kentuckians have received vaccines since the Shot at a Million drawing was announced on June 4.

Permanent residents of Kentucky can enter here to win the following prizes:

• $1 million: Kentuckians 18 and older who have received at least their first dose of a Moderna or Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine, or the one-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine, may enter to win one of the remaining two $1 million prizes.
• Full Scholarship: Kentuckians 12 to 17 years old who have received at least their first dose of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine may enter to win one of the remaining 10 full scholarships to a Kentucky public college, university, technical or trade school, which includes tuition, room-and-board and books.

Click here for more information, official rules, and to enter.

Asking someone to wear a mask is so 2020. The new tough conversation is finding out about someone’s COVID-19 vaccination status. Experts say the way you ask matters, including your tone, sincerity and choice of words.

But for starters, it shouldn’t be a random question, says Elaine Swann, an etiquette expert and founder of the Swann School of Protocol. After all, it is personal information that usually isn’t any of your business — unless you plan on letting the person into your personal space. And even then, a more private person still may not want to disclose their status. So what do you do? It helps to begin by asking yourself why you want to know in the first place.

If your main reason is to assess your risk of COVID-19, then you should know that just because someone is vaccinated doesn’t mean you’ll be 100% safe.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says that if a person is vaccinated, you still need to continue most of your COVID-19 safety practices, including washing hands and wearing a mask when you’re in public.

That means you don’t really have a reason to be asking strangers.

“I don’t think we should ever get to the point where you’re asking someone in the grocery store lines what their vaccination status is,” Swann says. “This type of question is more reserved for individuals that you plan on spending time with.”

So if you feel the need to know, because you’re thinking of inviting a person into your home or you’re at a gathering where people are not wearing masks, you should keep a few important things in mind:

1. Consider your tone.

“Having a non-judgmental and matter-of-fact tone is important when asking a person about their COVID-19 vaccination status,” says Haley Neidich, LCSW, a psychotherapist in Tampa. If you come off defensive while asking, you will receive a defensive response. This is true in any form of questioning, Swann notes, adding that you should also avoid an accusing tone.

Instead, take a curious and inclusive approach to your inquiry. “A way to do this while also softening the blow is to reveal your vaccination status first and then ask the other person how they feel about it or what their plans are,” Swann explains.

This will spark a more natural and organic conversation, making a person feel more comfortable revealing their vaccination status.

2. Choose words wisely.

Just like you should keep your tone in check, you should also put thought into the words you choose when asking about someone’s vaccination status. Neidich says vaccine conversations shouldn’t be tense — they should be direct but judgment-free and sincere. So instead of simply asking, “Are you vaccinated?” break the ice by saying, “I hope you don’t mind me asking...” It can also help to state why you want to know. You could say something like, “Are you comfortable with sharing your vaccine status with me? I’m nervous about being around people,” or “If it’s not too personal, can you share your vaccine status? I’m trying to navigate when to wear a mask. What are your thoughts?” This way, the person knows you’re coming from a sincere place, rather than a nosy one.

3. Ask in private.

If you want to come off in the least confrontational way, Neidich says asking over text is a great way to go. This will give the person time to process and react without the added pressure of being put on the spot. Still consider your word choices, though, and use phrases like “would you be willing to share?” and being open about whether you’ve been vaccinated.

However, if you’re worried about your tone getting lost in translation, stick with a phone or in-person chat. “This will allow you to fully focus on the tone of your voice, which can make your questioning feel less intimidating to another person,” Swann says.

However, she also notes that if you decide to ask in person, make sure to do it privately. “If you put someone on the spot in front of other people, it may not turn out well,” Swann says. Wait until you are alone.

4. Make your boundaries clear.

Another way to go about asking someone their COVID-19 vaccination status is by stating your rules and boundaries. This may be the least intrusive way to get answers because it leaves it up to the person whether to disclose their status or not.

For example, try a similar statement to Neidich’s: “My family has been fully vaccinated and are doing our best to only expose ourselves fully to those who have also received the vaccine.” Based on someone’s response, you can then decide how you want to move forward. “This may mean canceling your plans completely or just indicating that you’ll plan to wear a mask,” Neidich says.

No one is obligated to tell you their COVID-19 vaccine status. So you need to be prepared to accept whatever response you get. “If a person does not tell you, immediately let it go. Do not push. Just drop it and respect their response,” Swann says. You can also assume that an indirect or loaded response means they haven’t been vaccinated or don’t intend to be, Neidich adds. So, in any case, move on or adjust your plans accordingly.

For those who have gotten vaccination against the COVID-19 virus, the vaccination card is an important document that needs to be kept safe. So why not make it fun? Below are some great leather and vinyl options for keeping your vaccination record safe and dry.

Want a plain, clear option instead? Check out several options from Amazon.

Reading this on our mobile app? Tap here for the best viewing experience.

CNN —

The U.S. is hitting major COVID-19 vaccination milestones, but health experts say those who are not inoculated should not rely on protection from those who are, as their infection risk hasn't gone down in response to declining cases.

"The work ahead of us is going to be really challenging because while the people who are fully vaccinated are well protected, we still have to keep on convincing individuals who are not yet vaccinated that they are not safe," CNN medical analyst Dr. Leana Wen said. "The pandemic is not over for them."

The risk for unvaccinated people is in fact about the same as it was in the middle of the January surge, Wen said citing an analysis from the Washington Post.

Half of the adult population in the U.S. is fully vaccinated, according to data published Tuesday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. And for those people, the upcoming Memorial Day weekend — an event identified as a major source of spread last year — may look much like it did prior to 2020.

"Thanks to vaccines, tens of millions of Americans are able to get back to something closer to normal visiting friends and family," CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky said at the White House coronavirus briefing Tuesday.

The CDC guidance hasn't changed for those who are unvaccinated, however, as they are still at risk for infection, Walensky said.

"If you are not vaccinated, I want to encourage you to take this holiday weekend to give yourself and your family the gift of protection by getting vaccinated," Walensky said. "We are on a good downward path, but we are not quite out of the woods yet."

While an Axios-Ipsos poll showed that only 44% of Americans socially distanced last week, down 12 percentage points from two weeks ago, Wen advised that unvaccinated people keep masking, distancing and practicing precautions.

Taking steps closer to more normal childhoods

There was also promising data Tuesday on COVID-19 infections in children.

With nearly 40,000 new cases, the U.S. saw the lowest number of weekly cases among children since early-October, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics.

Currently, only children 12 and older are eligible for COVID-19 vaccinations. While studies are underway for safety and efficacy in younger children, a vaccine for younger children likely won't be available until late fall or early winter, Dr. Anthony Fauci said.

But given the number of vaccinated teachers and the significant decline in cases, the director of the National Institute for Allergy and Infectious Disease told the House Appropriations committee on Tuesday that it should be safe for children of all ages to go back to in-person class in the fall.

A return to some normalcy for children is a welcome development for many, especially in light of the mental health challenges the pandemic has posed.

"People sort of shrug and say, 'Well, you know, kids are resilient,' but wait a minute, this is really an incredible unprecedented challenge to their life experience," National Institutes of Health Director Dr. Francis Collins told the House Appropriations committee on Tuesday.

There are several questions new research will have to address, Collins said.

"What has it meant for them to be out of school, which is normally the place where a lot of socialization and education happens for this prolonged period. And what about this issue of being fearful of an illness that might actually affect your families, might suddenly be blamed on you if you were the one who happened to bring the illness in?" Collins said.

Lottery tickets and full scholarships for vaccinations

In the meantime, states are finding new ways to persuade residents to get vaccinated.

In Delaware, officials announced a partnership with the Delaware Lottery to twice-weekly drawings for vaccination incentives.

Delawareans aged 12 and older who were vaccinated "from May 25-June 29, and any Delawarean ages 12-17 vaccinated to date, will be entered to win $5,000 in cash and additional prizes in twice-weekly drawings conducted by the Delaware Lottery," according to a statement from Governor John Carney's office.

Other prizes include a four-day vacation, a full scholarship to a Delaware public university and tickets to events, according to the statement.

"Incentive programs are one of three key levers that are becoming widely recognized for increasing vaccine rates," said Dr. Karyl Rattay, Director of the Delaware Division of Public Health.

The Delaware plan mirrors initiatives in other states. Ohio, for example, has announced a lottery for vaccinated residents while West Virginia is offering a $100 savings bond to residents ages 16 to 35 who get the vaccines.

In Arkansas, every resident who gets vaccinated starting May 25 will be given a $20 lottery scratch-offs or a gift certificate with Arkansas Game and Fish Commission for $21 that can be redeemed for fishing license or a hunting/fishing license in the state, Gov. Asa Hutchison announced in a press conference.

More than 42 percent of the total population in the United States has received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine. More than 29 percent of Americans are fully vaccinated, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Dozens of people received either their first or second shot of the Pfizer vaccine on Tuesday at an event in New Orleans East.Each person had a different reason for getting vaccinated.Karisalynn Dell, 17, wants to protect herself and others from getting sick. She told sister station WDSU she is also excited to attend her senior prom soon."It was difficult last year with the online school and everything, but now it’s starting to get, you know, better," said Dell. "I thought it would be a big step for me getting vaccinated, especially for me and everybody around me, so I was just ready for it."Antonia Ramirez was also vaccinated Tuesday."For my grandchildren," said Ramirez. "Because when you love someone, you do what it takes."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Others, like college students Andrew Busenlener and Hannah Justus, are eager to get back to a more normal college experience."It’s been really difficult. Me and my friends all kind of feel like the best years of our lives are getting robbed from us," Justus said. "It feels like I’m not getting as strong of an education as I was before, and I’m not sure if it’s worth my money anymore," Busenlener said.Watch the video above for more on this story.

After surviving a fear-filled year of the COVID-19 pandemic, getting vaccinated is a cause for celebration.

From beer and doughnuts to savings bonds and chances to win a brand new car, places around the U.S. are offering incentives to try to energize the nation’s slowing vaccination drive and get Americans to roll up their sleeves.

These promotion efforts have been accompanied by more serious and far-reaching attempts by officials in cities such as Detroit, where officials are offering $50 to people who give others a ride to vaccination sites.

Chicago officials are planning vaccination sites at festivals and block parties and are working with barbershops and hair and nail salons to pair free services with vaccination.

“The idea here is to bring the party, bring the vaccine and really have this be a convenient way for people to get vaccinated,” Chicago Health Commissioner Dr. Allison Arwady said.

Several companies have also announced that employees can take paid time off to get vaccinated.

Officials in West Virginia are giving $100 savings bonds to young adults who get their shots.

Other companies are getting into the spirit with marketing pitches.

In Cleveland, a movie theater is supplying free popcorn through the end of this month.

Several marijuana dispensaries around the country are giving out cannabis treats or free rolled joints. On April 20, marijuana advocates offered “joints for jabs” to encourage people to get vaccinated in New York City and Washington.

In New Jersey, residents 21 and older can get a free beer if get their first vaccine dose in the month of may and take their vaccination card to 13 participating breweries.

[twitter align='center' id='1389286035964760067' username="NJGov"]https://twitter.com/NJGov/status/1389286035964760067[/twitter

In Alaska, which traditionally has low vaccine confidence, the Norton Sound Health Corp., with a hospital in Nome and 15 clinics across western Alaska, has given away prizes, including airline tickets, money toward the purchase of an all-terrain vehicle, and $500 for groceries or fuel.

Here are other businesses offering incentives for customers who have been vaccinated for COVID-19:

Junior's Cheesecake

From now through Memorial Day, Junior's Restaurant is offering a free mini cheesecake to anyone who shows their vaccine card at their landmark restaurant at Flatbush Ave. and DeKalb in Downtown Brooklyn. (In New York City only.)

Krispy Kreme

You can get one free glazed doughnut every day if you take your vaccination card to any Krispy Kreme location in the U.S., the company said in a press release. The card must show one or two shots of any COVID-19 vaccine to qualify, and the offer must be redeemed in store. And no, you don't need to purchase anything to get your daily free doughnut.

Budweiser

Through May 16, or while supplies last, Budweiser is giving a free beer to anyone 21 years old and up who provides their proof of vaccination on ABeerOnBud.com. Bud fans first have to first register at the company's mycooler.com website.

Nathan's Hot Dogs

If you visit Nathan's Famous in Coney Island with your vaccination card — on the same day you get vaccinated — you get a free hot dog. (In New York City only.)

Staples and Office Depot

Staples and Office Depot want vaccinated Americans to keep their vaccination record cards in good condition. So the office supply companies are offering free laminating services for those with completed COVID-19 vaccination cards. A spokesperson for Staples told CNN that the service is available at all Staples locations in the U.S. and currently has no end date.

White Castle

Through May 31, burger chain White Castle is giving a free dessert-on-a-stick to anyone with proof they have received a COVID-19 vaccine, according to the company. White Castle offers four versions of the dessert on a stick: Gooey Buttercake-on-a-Stick, Fudge Dipped Brownie-on-a-Stick, Fudge Dipped Cheesecake-on-a-Stick and, as of earlier this month, its Birthday Cake-on-a-Stick in honor of the company's centennial this year. No other purchase is necessary.

The Associated Press and CNN contributed to this report.

COVINGTON, Ky. —

Kentucky is following the lead of several other states with plans to lift the mask-wearing protocols June 11.

The governor made the announcement Friday and called it a shot of hope for residents of the state. It was welcomed news for residents and businesses that have been under unbelievable restrictions for 14 months.

“You have to let people make their own decisions,” Northern Kentucky resident Jack Simkonis said.

Some businesses will let their own policies stand and individuals will let their conscience be their guide.

Although the mask protocols will be lifted in June, many venues will be allowed to increase their capacity to 75% shortly before Memorial Day.

“If you feel like you need to wear a mask, wear a mask. I think we’re at a good place and I think the numbers show that,” Northern Kentucky resident Bill Kornblum said.

For Americans vaccinated against COVID-19, daily life may look increasingly different than for those who aren't inoculated yet following Thursday's mask guidance, experts said.

"We are on the right path (for) people who are fully immunized," National Institutes of Health Director Dr. Francis Collins told CNN. "You can take your mask off indoors as well as outdoors."

But he added: "We are not at the end of this story. There are still a lot of people who haven't gotten that shot."

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced that people fully vaccinated against COVID-19 — meaning those who have waited two weeks after their final dose — generally don't need to wear masks or practice social distancing indoors or outdoors.

The CDC arrived at its new guidance because of declining case rates, increasing numbers of vaccinations and growing understanding of the risk of viral spread by vaccinated people, CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky told CBS on Friday.

"In the last two weeks, our cases have come down by a third," she said. "We have a rapidly declining case right probably because our vaccination rate is going up.

"Over the last several weeks, we have seen emerging signs that if you were vaccinated, you're safe and protected from getting COVID-19 and you really have a very low risk of transmitting to other people and that these vaccines are really working against the variants that we have circulating here in the United States," she said.

For those who experienced no immediate impact from receiving their vaccine, "now your life is going to change," said Dr. Anthony Fauci, adding that although some businesses, like airlines, may keep mask mandates in place, venues like grocery stores, restaurants, bars and bowling alleys may soon look much more like they did pre-pandemic.

The CDC's decision may have the indirect effect of being an incentive for people who are on the fence about getting the vaccine, but it was based on the science showing how strong vaccine protection is, Fauci said.

But as a sense of normalcy resumes for those who are protected, experts warn that the risk of infection may grow for those who are not vaccinated.

"We keep thinking of this country as a vaccinated and an unvaccinated country," CNN medical analyst Sanjay Gupta said. "What it's slowly going to turn into is a vaccinated and an infected country."

And without a way to verify who is vaccinated and who is not, the guidance may inhibit the U.S. from reaching herd immunity and put those who cannot yet be vaccinated or are immuno-compromised in more danger, said CNN medical analyst Leana Wen.

"They were overly cautious and now I think they are throwing caution to the wind," Wen said of the CDC's guidelines.

People should defer to local rules on mask-wearing, Walensky told NBC on Friday.

"We really do need to understand that this country is not uniform. There are places in this country that still have higher rates of disease. There are places in this country that still have lower rates of vaccination," she said.

"People need to look into their local environment because, ultimately, we know that this virus is an opportunist, and where there are low rates of vaccination, it will emerge again," Walensky said. "We really need to make sure that we get people vaccinated, and we still continue to take precautions if people are not vaccinated."

Masks may stay on for some

Those who are not vaccinated are threatening their own health if they go out in public and forego the social-distancing and mask usage guidance, experts said.

And people who have compromised immune systems from situations like chemotherapy and organ transplants may not have a sufficient immune response to safely remove their masks in public, Wen said.

Although studies are ongoing for younger children, vaccines have only been approved for children as young as 12. So, those who are not yet old enough to get their doses still need to wear their masks indoors and around others, Fauci said.

Elementary age children likely won't be vaccinated until the end of the year, Fauci told MSNBC on Friday.

"They're called age de-escalation studies, and that is you get children at different age brackets, and you do a test to make sure that it's safe," he said. "You go from age 12 to 9. if it looks good, then you go 9 to 6; that looks good, 6 to 2; that looks good, and then 6 months to 2 years."

That timeline likely puts the youngest children at the back of the line, Fauci said.

"I think that high school kids, adolescents certainly, will be able to be vaccinated by the time we get to the fall year, but I think it's going to take to the end of the calendar year to get elementary."

U.S. retailers may still require patrons be masked, and the CDC still advises wearing one when traveling or using public transport, Walensky noted.

The choice to remove masks is a decision vaccinated people can make for themselves, and some may choose not to, Fauci said.

"There's absolutely nothing wrong with an individual who has a certain level of risk aversion, as we know the risk is extremely low of getting infected whether you're indoors or outdoors," Fauci said. "But there are those people who don't want to take that bit of a risk, and there's nothing wrong with that, and they shouldn't be criticized."

Some states jump on the changes, others hold back

How the recommendations play out may depend on how state leaders respond— and their reactions have been varied.

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer announced Friday the state will lift its mask requirement for fully vaccinated people effective Saturday at 9 a.m., according to a statement released by her office.

"The vast majority of us have trusted the scientists and experts to keep us safe during the pandemic, and it has worked. With millions of Michiganders fully vaccinated, we can now safely and confidently take the next step to get back to normal," Whitmer said.

Maryland, Minnesota, New Mexico, Vermont and Virginia are ending mask mandates for vaccinated people, effective Friday, May 14. Delaware will lift its mask mandate for the vaccinated on May 21.

In Virginia, all distancing and capacity restrictions will be lifted May 28, two weeks earlier than planned, Gov. Ralph Northam said Friday.

Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear said that capacity restrictions and face mask mandates will end June 11 and "life will be almost fully back to normal."

West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice said he will lift the state's face mask requirements for fully vaccinated people on June 20.

Rhode Island will align its mask guidance with the CDC's starting Tuesday, Gov Dan McKee said Friday, and Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine directed the state's health department to conform the state's health order with the CDC's guidance.

Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey called the latest guidance "common sense" and said the state has "already embraced this idea," in a statement to CNN. Alabama dropped the state's mask mandate in April.

"Alabamians are getting back to living. So, Alabama, roll up your sleeves and get the vaccine!" Ivey said.

New York, Colorado and North Carolina officials will review the guidance before making any changes.

Los Angeles County has decided against following the new relaxed measures for now.

While vaccinated people don't need to wear a mask in the company of other vaccinated people in uncrowded areas, everybody is still required to wear face coverings in crowded indoor and outdoor venues, Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer said Thursday during a news conference.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Thursday will ease indoor mask-wearing guidance for fully vaccinated people, allowing them to safely stop wearing masks inside in most places, according to a person briefed on the announcement.

The new guidance will still call for wearing masks in crowded indoor settings like buses, planes, hospitals, prisons and homeless shelters, but could ease restrictions for reopening workplaces and schools.

It will also no longer recommend that fully vaccinated people wear masks outdoors in crowds. The announcement comes as the CDC and the Biden administration have faced pressure to ease restrictions on fully vaccinated people — people who are two weeks past their last required COVID-19 vaccine dose — in part to highlight the benefits of getting the shot.

The eased guidance comes two weeks after the CDC recommended that fully vaccinated people continue to wear masks indoors in all settings and outdoors in large crowds.

Dr. Rochelle Walensky, the director of the CDC, was set to announce the new guidance on Thursday afternoon at a White House briefing.

During a virtual meeting Tuesday on vaccinations with a bipartisan group of governors, President Joe Biden appeared to acknowledge that his administration had to do more to model the benefits of vaccination.

"I would like to say that we have fully vaccinated people; we should start acting like it," Utah Gov. Spencer Cox, a Republican, told Biden. "And that's a big motivation to get the unvaccinated to want to get vaccinated."

"Good point," Biden responded. He added, "we're going to be moving on that in the next little bit."

The person spoke on the condition of anonymity to preview the announcement ahead of the official release. The White House did not comment on the matter.

Evidence from the U.S. and Israel shows the vaccines are as strongly protective in real-world use as they were in earlier studies, and that so far they continue to work even though some worrying mutated versions of the virus are spreading.

The more people continue to get vaccinated, the faster infections will drop — and the harder it will be for the virus to mutate enough to escape vaccines.

And while some people still get COVID-19 despite vaccination those infections tend to be milder, shorter and harder to spread to others.

—

AP medical writer Lauran Neergaard contributed.