Number of Americans fully vaccinated tops 100 million

Disneyland reopened on Friday and cruise lines welcomed the news that they could be sailing again in the US by midsummer, as the number of Americans fully vaccinated against COVID-19 reached another milestone: 100 million.

Visitors cheered and screamed with delight as the Southern California theme park swung open its gates for the first time in 13 months in a powerful symbol of the US rebound, even though the self-proclaimed Happiest Place on Earth is allowing only in-state guests for now and operating at just 25% capacity.

The reopening and similar steps elsewhere around the country reflect increasing optimism as COVID-19 deaths tumble and the ranks of the vaccinated grow - a stark contrast to the worsening disaster in India and Brazil and the scant availability of vaccines in many poor parts of the world.


In fact, the US announced on Friday it will restrict travel from India starting Tuesday, citing the devastating rise in COVID-19 cases in the country and the emergence of potentially dangerous variants of the coronavirus.

While the overall number of lives lost to COVID-19 in the U.S. has eclipsed 575,000, deaths have plummeted to an average of about 670 per day from a peak of around 3,400 in mid-January. Thirty-nine percent of the nation's adult population has been fully vaccinated, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Over 55 per cent of adults have received at least one dose, up from 30 per cent a month ago.

However, about 8 per cent of those who have gotten one dose of either the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine have not returned for their second shot, officials said.

Dr Anthony Fauci, the nation's top infectious disease expert, said it is important to complete the course to gain maximum protection against the virus. "Make sure you get that second dose," he said at a White House briefing.

Dr Leana Wen, former Baltimore health commissioner and a visiting professor of health policy at George Washington University, said fully vaccinating about 40 per cent of American adults is a great achievement but not enough.