Covid vaccine and booster shots in U.S. hit highest weekly level since January

WASHINGTON — More than 5.6 million Covid vaccine and booster shots were administered in the past week, the highest seven-day total in the U.S. since January, according to a Biden administration official.

The new numbers, first shared with NBC News, outpace the previous weekly sums by about 1 million.

About 5.1 million of the past week’s shots were bivalent boosters, designed to combat the most virulent Omicron strains. That figure is the peak since the start of the government’s fall vaccination program for updated doses, the official said.

Oct. 28, 202204:14

The administration official said the White House is encouraged by the progress and a “strong, steady pace,” but emphasized that they still “need more people to step up” heading into the winter months.

In total, 32 million people in the U.S. have received the bivalent booster, just a fraction of the hundreds of millions who are eligible.

So far, 15 million seniors have already gotten their boosters, but the White House would like to see that number increase as well, given the elderly are more at-risk for severe outcomes from coronavirus.

Overall, as Covid cases and hospitalizations have come down nationwide, the White House has shifted its tone to focus more on learning to live with the virus than letting it dictate daily life.

“After 20 months of hard work, the pandemic no longer controls our lives. It’s still a concern, but it no longer controls our lives,” President Joe Biden said in a news conference Wednesday.

Biden received his updated vaccine last month, around 90 days after he had the virus — the recommended waiting period for people who have been infected.

Senior administration officials have warned in recent weeks about a possible winter surge, particularly as people spend more time indoors.

The administration plans to launch a new push next week to increase the rate of vaccinations and boosters by the holidays. The effort will include working with local and national organizations to encourage people to get their shots by next week so that they’re considered protected by Thanksgiving.