More vaccines, fewer mask rules as US keeps fighting COVID

The United States is steadily chipping away at vaccine hesitancy and driving down COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations to the point that schools, governments and corporations are lifting mask restrictions yet again. Nearly 200 million Americans are fully vaccinated. Nearly 98% of the over-65 population has received at least one COVID-19 shot and more than 25% of them have gotten boosters. The improving metrics could get a boost from President Joe Biden’s workplace mandate and the launch of COVID-19 shots in elementary school students. But some experts warn the virus isn’t going away and it could spread more easily with people indoors this winter.