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With the world at stake due to the rapid spread of Omicron mutation, the United States convened an international cooperative meeting to respond to Omicron mutation. There are even warnings that the number of new coronavirus cases in the United States could exceed an all-time high.
Correspondent Kim Jong-won reports from New York.
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the number of omicron mutations soared to such an extent that it became the dominant species in the United States within three weeks of the first outbreak, concerns were raised that more new confirmed cases could emerge than ever before.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) predicted that the number of new confirmed cases could exceed the previous record as the number of travelers over the year-end and New Year holidays increases in the context of the spread of Omicron, which has a much faster rate of infection.
So far, the daily average daily high of confirmed cases was 250,000 in early January.
The CDC warns that Omicron is low in severity, but it can infect many people at once, causing shortages of medical resources, such as hospitals.
Speaking to the public, President Biden once again emphasized vaccination and ordered thorough quarantine, but said there was no need to be overly fearful.
[Joe Biden/President of the United States: The question many people ask is not going back to March 2020 (when the corona crisis first began). The answer is absolutely no. Because in March 2020, no one was vaccinated.]
President Biden has announced that he will increase the number of vaccination stations across the country and will distribute home-based testing kits across the country that can test for the coronavirus at home starting in January next year.
Meanwhile, the U.S. State Department invited 20 countries around the world, including South Korea, to preside over a video conference to discuss the response to Omicron.