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Speaker 1: Bloomberg Audio Studios, podcasts, radio news.

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Speaker 2: You're here today because the CDC has issued sweeping new

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Speaker 2: guidance around COVID isolation and other respiratory viruses. Tell us

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Speaker 2: about today's changes.

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Speaker 1: Well, first, we want folks to know that we're in

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Speaker 1: a new place, and that's fantastic. We're seeing less deaths,

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Speaker 1: less hospitalizations from COVID, but we want to make sure

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Speaker 1: folks are using the tools we know work. That's why

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Speaker 1: we've released these updated guidance, not just for COVID, but

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Speaker 1: across respiratory virus like COVID flu RSV. And most importantly

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Speaker 1: in those recommendations is get vaccinated.

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Speaker 2: And the recommendation suggests that if you are twenty four

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Speaker 2: hours fever free without medication and you see your symptoms abating,

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Speaker 2: you can return to life, to school, to work. Why now,

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Speaker 2: what has changed? We haven't seen new guidance in a

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Speaker 2: few years.

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Speaker 1: Right, So we are in a new place. So we

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Speaker 1: were able to put out this updated guidance again because

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Speaker 1: we're seeing less hospitalizations and less deaths from COVID, as

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Speaker 1: we were still seeing high levels of viral spread. We

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Speaker 1: have wastewater data that shows that there was a lot

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Speaker 1: of COVID that was circulating this winter. But the good

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Speaker 1: news was we weren't seeing any increases in those hospitalizations

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Speaker 1: or deaths, and so with that continued trend over yet

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Speaker 1: another season, we felt we could move forward. The other

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Speaker 1: is we were also seeing that the folks who came

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Speaker 1: to the hospital with COVID this season, ninety five percent

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Speaker 1: of them did not get an updated COVID vaccine. It

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Speaker 1: made us want to reiterate how important getting vaccinated is

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Speaker 1: to keep you out of the hospital.

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Speaker 2: Vaccine update in the United States continues to decline with

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Speaker 2: each booster shot, So how are you considering the latest

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Speaker 2: uptake numbers as you issue this guidance.

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Speaker 1: You know, we saw far few few folks get the

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Speaker 1: updated COVID vaccine this past season. Now it was slightly

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Speaker 1: higher than the year prior, which is good, and we're

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Speaker 1: hoping to build on those trends, but not as high

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Speaker 1: as what we're seeing with flu shots. And we want

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Speaker 1: folks to anticipate that they're going to be an updated

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Speaker 1: COVID vaccine as well as an updated flu shot later

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Speaker 1: this fall. So get ready now for your updated COVID

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Speaker 1: vaccine and your flu shot coming this fall.

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Speaker 2: Doctor Cohen. How do you respond to Americans, particularly those

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Speaker 2: over the age of sixty five or the compromised, who

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Speaker 2: may feel that this guidance leaves them more vulnerable to infection.

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Speaker 1: Well, I want to know. I want folks to know

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Speaker 1: who are at higher risk of bad outcomes from these viruses,

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Speaker 1: to know. They were top of mind when we were

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Speaker 1: putting together this guidance. We all know someone who is

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Speaker 1: over sixty five or immuno compromise. They're in my own family,

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Speaker 1: and so I was thinking about them when we did

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Speaker 1: this guidance. We wanted guidance that was simple and easy

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Speaker 1: for folks to understand. More people are able to follow

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Speaker 1: guidance that is simplified, and if more people are following

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Speaker 1: that guidance, that means less viral spread and more protection

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Speaker 1: for us all. In addition, we do have tools that

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Speaker 1: can protect those that are most vulnerable. Vaccine again, is

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Speaker 1: the most important tool that we need to be using,

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Speaker 1: making sure that folks are staying up to date with

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Speaker 1: their vaccines. And then we released additional guidance for those

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Speaker 1: who are over sixty five, for those who are immunocompromise,

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Speaker 1: our disability community, pregnant moms and younger kids. They're all

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Speaker 1: special considerations that we want to make sure they're following

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Speaker 1: as well, so we can keep those who are most

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Speaker 1: vulnerable protected.

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Speaker 2: Throughout the pandemic. The CDC phase some criticism for mixed

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Speaker 2: messaging around guidance. I wonder is this effort to streamline

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Speaker 2: for COVID fluent RSV an attempt to address those criticisms.

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Speaker 1: We've learned a lot of lessons through COVID. One of

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Speaker 1: them is to have simple, clear communication. I think that's

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Speaker 1: what you're seeing here. We're trying to help folks really

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Speaker 1: prioritize what are the most important actions to take and

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Speaker 1: so that they can remember what to do no matter

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Speaker 1: what they have. The reality is, we know a lot

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Speaker 1: of folks aren't getting tested when they get sick, and

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Speaker 1: so we want them to have easy to follow guidance

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Speaker 1: no matter what they have. Top line, though, continues to

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Speaker 1: be get vaccinating