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U.S. FDA Panel Recommends Pfizer Booster Shot For 65 And Older; France Recalls Ambassadors As AUKUS Dispute Escalates; U.S. Capitol On Alert; Texas Town Faces Migrant Crisis; U.S. Admits Kabul Drone Strike Killed Only Civilians; FBI Searching For Missing 22-Year-Old; Unvaccinated Admission Push Hospitals To The Brink; 73rd Primetime Emmy Awards. Aired 5-6a ET
Aired September 18, 2021 - 05:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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KIM BRUNHUBER, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): President Biden's plans to roll out COVID booster shots suffers a major setback. Why the FDA is advising against widespread use.
Then, the U.S. admits its drone strike in Kabul was a mistake after innocent people are killed. We'll talk with one of the first journalists to cover the story.
And the rift between the U.S. and France grows wider, as Paris recalls its ambassadors to Washington and Canberra over a new national security partnership.
Live from CNN headquarters in Atlanta. Welcome to all of you watching here in the United States, Canada and around the world, I'm Kim Brunhuber. This is CNN NEWSROOM.
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BRUNHUBER: We're getting a better idea of just how many Americans could soon be eligible for vaccine boosters. An advisory panel to the Food and Drug Administration has recommended Pfizer's booster shot only be given to people 65 years and older and those at high risk of severe disease.
Some see the vote as a setback for the Biden administration. It's been making plans to ensure supplies were in place for boosters to be administered beginning Monday. While the final decision awaits approval from health regulators, the White House says the decision is an important step forward.
CNN's Dr. Sanjay Gupta explains why the committee made its recommendation and what it means for the future of booster shots in the U.S.
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DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, it was a contentious FDA advisory committee meeting, as many thought it would be because there's a lot of back and forth about the science determining boosters and how people are interpreting that science.
After a lot of discussion, there was a vote that took place, asking whether or not there's enough evidence supporting boosters for people 16 and older six months after they got their first shots.
And that came back a no vote, pretty significantly no. A little while later, after more discussion, they changed the question.
Instead of approving, would the FDA committee recommend authorization, emergency use authorization, of a vaccine booster for people 65 or older or people at risk of severe disease?
And that came back a unanimous yes. So this was not your typical advisory committee meeting. Now this is just an advisory committee; they make the recommendation to the FDA. The FDA usually takes their recommendation. Authorization happens, then it goes over to the CDC, where those meetings are going to happen next week.
And from the CDC you will get a official recommendation as to who should get the booster.
Who are those people, at risk for severe disease?
Will health care workers also be included because of high risk?
So all of these questions will be answered. Again, a lot of back and forth. But one question that came up tangentially, the bulk of the pandemic in this country is still very much happened among the unvaccinated.
If you take a look at the CDC graphic, you see who's in the hospital, unvaccinated versus a line you can barely see at the bottom, that's the vaccinated. About 95 percent, roughly, of hospitalizations of COVID patients are among the unvaccinated.
They said among the unvaccinated, who are they, who are they likely to be in terms of age and pre-existing conditions?
And you can see the vast majority of hospitalizations and deaths in breakthrough infections were in people 65 and older. Again, that takes us right back to the recommendation from the FDA today.
We'll see what happens next. Again, the FDA has to officially weigh in on this, the CDC then. All of this will take place over the next several days. As we get more details, we'll certainly bring them to you.
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BRUNHUBER: The Biden administration is scrambling to contain a political firestorm with France over a new security deal with Australia, the U.S. and the U.K. That agreement cost France a $65 billion contract to supply diesel-powered submarines to Australia. Paris is now taking the extraordinary step of recalling its
ambassadors to Canberra and Washington. Here's Kylie Atwood at the State Department.
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KYLIE ATWOOD, CNN U.S. SECURITY ANALYST: The French are recalling their ambassador from Washington. This is believed to be the first time in modern history that they have taken such a move.
It's significant because French officials have expressed their frustration and anger. This demonstrates they're not going to allow that to dissipate and let this go in the past. They're having conversations with their ambassador to the United States to determine a way forward.
Of course, the frustration is over a new U.S.-U.K.-Australia partnership. Central to that is the United States helping Australia develop nuclear-powered submarines.
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ATWOOD: That means that the French deal with the Australians for traditional submarines is clearly on ice. That's a multibillion dollar deal that's looking like it's not going to happen.
So there are economics, business reasons that the French are frustrated. But they're also frustrated because they felt they were left in the dark. The foreign minister called this a stab in the back.
Clearly, French officials feel they weren't given a heads-up as this was happening and they said they wanted to be part of an Indo Pacific strategy. And of course, the other fact is it highlights just how complex this moment in time when it comes to geopolitics and the grueling competition, the heating up between the U.S. and China, putting European, allies of the United States but also want to work with China, in a very tricky position -- Kylie Atwood, CNN, the State Department.
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BRUNHUBER: CNN's Jim Bittermann joins us from Paris with more on the French reaction.
Jim, the French reaction to this, at least in some ways, at least diplomatically, seems unprecedented, is that right?
JIM BITTERMANN, CNN SR. INTL. CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely. We're trying to figure out if this is the only time this has happened and it may well be. There's no other time, a moment when the long-standing allies, France and America, have recalled -- the French recalled the ambassador to the United States.
You know, it is -- the measure of the frustration that they feel over this deal and also the way the deal has been negotiated, it's been in the works for months now. And the French have had any number of forums with the United States.
For example, there was a military exercise off the coast of China, back in May, with Japan, the United States and France involved. And at that point, there could have been something brought up with them about the negotiations that were going on and this new Western Pacific security pact that has now been put together.
So there's a feeling of betrayal, that this was all negotiated behind their backs. And then there's also, of course, the commercial aspect. This is $65 billion of sales, weapons sales, that the French are not going to get.
So it is, for the French, a really upsetting thing. I think they're trying to show how upset they are by withdrawing the ambassador; at least, recalling him, for consultation, along with the ambassador to Australia.
The other thing I think that the French are a little frustrated is about is, if the U.S. is re-drawing the way it behaves vis-a-vis China, France wants to be part of that deal. They have far more interest in the Western Pacific than the Brits do. And the Brits are part of this deal.
But the French have got French Polynesia and New Caledonia and 7,000 soldiers, at least military, in the Western Pacific. So there are a lot of reasons that they should be part of any kind of a security deal. But they apparently are being excluded from this -- Kim.
BRUNHUBER: All right, Jim Bittermann in Paris, thanks so much.
We want to show you live pictures of Capitol Hill, Where police are on high alert just hours ahead of a far right-wing rally in support of January 6th insurrectionists. Only about 700 people are expected to attend but authorities say they aren't taking any chances. CNN's Ryan Nobles has the details.
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RYAN NOBLES, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Capitol Hill on alert.
CHIEF TOM MANGER, U.S. CAPITOL POLICE: The leadership of the U.S. Capitol police department has been preparing, working to ensure that we don't have a repeat of January 6th.
NOBLES: The U.S. Capitol police are preparing for the worst, establishing a massive security presence.
MANGER: We're not going to tolerate violence and we will not tolerate criminal behavior of any kind. The American public and the members of Congress have an expectation that we protect the Capitol. And I'm confident with the plan we have in place that we're going to be able to meet that expectation.
NOBLES: This security presence is akin to that of a major event like the State of the Union or inauguration. It includes a massive security fence that wraps around the entire Capitol. An all-hands-on-deck force of officers, backup from local police and the national guard and specific training in tabletop exercises for a worst-case scenario.
Capitol police chief Tom Manger says he and his leadership team took time to meet with each individual officer to make sure they were ready, especially those who are on the front lines on January 6th.
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MANGER: We're trying to get in front of every single police officer in the U.S. Capitol police department. And the reason was to brief them on our plan and the whole purpose behind that was to instill confidence that the department has prepared.
NOBLES: While the Capitol is the focus, law enforcement leaders are also concerned about the city at large. A number of festivals and sporting events are scheduled throughout Washington D.C., and the Metropolitan D.C., police chief promises his officers are prepared.
CHIEF ROBERT J. CONTEE III, D.C. METROPOLITAN POLICE: We expect it to go on and people who attend are going to enjoy themselves, we are prepared, we have contingency plans for any possible disruptions.
NOBLES: Chief manger couldn't provide an estimate of how much this massive and quick security scale-up would cost. But said more than anything it was designed to practice for threats bigger than the one they anticipate this weekend. He also predicted this won't be a regular occurrence.
MANGER: I think that we're going to use it when it needs to be used. But 99 percent of the demonstrations we handle are handled without this kind of planning.
NOBLES: And while it's clear that Capitol Police are not taking any chances, that's the reason that this fence is wrapping all the way around the Capitol complex. They do feel confident that things should go smoothly on Saturday.
I talked to a senior law enforcement official, who pointed out that the organizer of this rally has never drawn a crowd of more than 100 people. At most, there could be somewhere between 500 and 700 people here on Saturday.
And they believe they have the resources in place to prevent anything bad from happening; this official telling me, "We are ready" -- Ryan Nobles, CNN, Capitol Hill.
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BRUNHUBER: Earlier, CNN spoke with former secretary of Homeland Security Michael Chertoff About the upcoming rally. Here's a little bit of what he said.
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MICHAEL CHERTOFF, FORMER U.S. SECRETARY OF HOMELAND SECURITY: I think people are rightly concerned that this encourages people to come, again, in a ridiculous effort to kind of overturn the election.
Let's remember, police officers died and were seriously injured. For politicians who claim to be supporters of the police, overlooking police being killed or otherwise being seriously injured is a real deep contradiction.
So I think this is not a good message. I do think, though, that there's now word getting out that perhaps some of the right wing groups will stay away, because they're afraid they may wind up actually getting trapped.
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BRUNHUBER: Still ahead, thousands of migrants are packed under a bridge after crossing into the U.S. from Mexico. And the town where they arrived says it just can't keep up anymore. Stay with us.
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BRUNHUBER: The fate of thousands of migrant families coming into the U.S. from Mexico is on the line at a federal court in Washington.
The Biden administration appealed a ruling on Friday that keeps it from using a pandemic health order to expel them. The ruling affects migrant families with children but unaccompanied minors are exempt.
Immigration advocates are accusing President Biden of a xenophobic policy passed under former president Donald Trump. This is all happening as a large wave of migrants is rolling into a town in Texas, Del Rio, just across the Mexican border.
Officials say thousands of migrants have crossed the Rio Grande River in just over a week. And without anyplace to stay, they're crammed under a bridge in the town, sometimes for days, as they wait to be processed. Rosa Flores reports.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Sky condition is clear. (INAUDIBLE) helicopter 116 to be taken off (INAUDIBLE).
ROSA FLORES, CNN CORRESPONDENT (from captions): So all of these people just crossed?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.
FLORES (from captions): This is hundreds of people?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (from captions): Oh, it's not hundreds, it's thousands.
FLORES (voice-over): This stretch of the U.S. southern border is raising eyebrows.
FLORES (from captions): Have you ever seen anything like this?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (from captions): Nothing. This far exceeds we've ever seen down here.
FLORES (voice-over): Migrants, mostly Haitians, say officials, crossing the Rio Grande into Del Rio, Texas, from Mexico.
FLORES (from captions): We can see at least three different spots where migrants are crossing into the United States.
FLORES (voice-over): Men, women, children, flocking to the area under the international bridge that connects Texas to Mexico, where more than 12,000 migrants are waiting to get processed by federal immigration authorities, according to the Del Rio mayor.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (Speaking Spanish).
FLORES (voice-over): This couple from Venezuela said they spent two days under the bridge with their 4-year-old son, sleeping in the dirt.
FLORES: So la tierra, on the dirt.
You were sleeping on the dirt?
FLORES (voice-over): They say they were fleeing political persecution and breakdown crime describing the toughest part of being under the bridge.
FLORES: She's explaining that she would tell her son that the family was camping so that he didn't worry.
MAYOR BRUNO LOZANO (D-TX), DEL RIO: This is setting the nuclear bomb alarm that this is no longer sustainable, acceptable.
FLORES (voice-over): The local mayor, a Democrat, pleading for the Biden administration to boost resources, saying, at the current rate, it will take two weeks to process these migrants.
And signs they're having to settle in are visible from the air. A makeshift camp is going up. And the mayor said at least one woman had given birth.
Most of the migrants will be expelled or placed in removal proceedings, say federal authorities, who also say more resources are coming and that it's already providing water, towels and portable toilets.
Buses like this one with dozens of people are dropped off at this migrant shelter every day.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (Speaking Spanish).? FLORES (voice-over): This group is asked if they're vaccinated against COVID-19.
About half the adults raise their hands, some holding proof they got the shots. All this, as the Department of Homeland Security faces a series of challenges, including more than 200,000 migrant encounters last month, the abrupt resignation of two top DHS officials, the Afghan resettlement effort and now this sudden spike of migrants in Del Rio.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: These people are desperate. They're determined and they're determined to get here.
FLORES (voice-over): As a humanitarian crisis unfolding at the southern border of the United States.
FLORES: To better understand what's going on under the bridge, I requested an interview and a ride-along with Custom and Border Protection. Those requests were denied -- Rosa Flores, CNN, Del Rio, Texas.
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BRUNHUBER: Still ahead, Washington, D.C., Is on high alert, hours before a far right wing rally in the nation's Capitol. But police say they're ready if it gets violent.
Plus, a key advisory panel in the U.S. is weighing in on who they think should get a booster vaccination. We'll discussion the recommendations with a global public health expert after the break. Please stay with us.
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BRUNHUBER: The U.S. military now admits it killed only civilians and no ISIS-K fighters when it targeted a car in Kabul last month. Ten people died in the drone strike, including seven children. For weeks, the U.S. Maintained at least one of them was a terrorist linked to an imminent threat at the Kabul airport.
But the man U.S. thought was an ISIS-K worker was actually an aid worker, whose car was filled with water containers, not explosives. The Pentagon calls it a tragic mistake caused by bad intel. Our Alex Marquardt describes what happened.
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ALEX MARQUARDT, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: It was a stunning about-face from the U.S. military, which went from calling this drone strike in Kabul a righteous strike against an ISIS target, to on Friday admitting that the target of the strike had nothing to do with ISIS.
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MARQUARDT: Said it was an aid worker, killed along with nine members of his family, including seven children. General Frank McKenzie, the head of Central Command, which oversaw the war in Afghanistan, said it was a mistake and he bears full responsibility. Take a listen.
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GEN. KENNETH MCKENZIE, COMMANDER, U.S. CENTRAL COMMAND: I offer my profound condolences to the family and friends of those who were killed. This strike was taken in the earnest belief that it would prevent an imminent threat to our forces and the evacuees at the airport.
But it was a mistake. And I offer my sincere apology. As a combatant commander, I am fully responsible for this strike and its tragic outcome.
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MARQUARDT: McKenzie said that the intelligence indicated that ISIS would use a white Toyota Corolla in an attack. Instead, he said he said the Toyota Corolla that they followed was that of an aid worker.
We know his name was Zamarai Ahmadi, who was a 43-year-old father of seven and he had driven on the morning of August 29th to his office, a U.S.-based NGO, to pick up a laptop and water for his family.
Upon returning home just before 5:00 pm, that is when the strike happened. A Hellfire missile tearing into his car, killing him and nine of his family members.
McKenzie pointed to the fact that there had just been a major attack at the Kabul airport, saying that the context had to be taken into consideration. That suicide bombing leaving more than 170 Afghans dead, as well as 13 American service members.
All intelligence indicated, he said, that there was another imminent attack in the works. McKenzie rejected the allegations by a journalist on Friday that this was a complete and utter failure, insisting that that day, much of the intelligence was good.
It is unclear whether anyone will be held responsible for this tragic mistake. McKenzie said that they are considering giving money to the family -- Alex Marquardt, CNN, at the Pentagon.
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BRUNHUBER: And we'll be right back. Please do stay with us.
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BRUNHUBER: All right. Before the break, we looked at how a U.S. military strike killed only civilians and no ISIS-K fighters when it targeted a car in Kabul last month. So for more on this, let's bring in Nabih Bulos, Middle East bureau chief for the "Los Angeles Times."
He was at the scene in the immediate aftermath and was one of the first Western journalists to piece together what happened.
Thanks for joining us. It's fair to say, it's only because of reporters like you that we're now learning the truth of what happened.
When you got to the scene, when did you first suspect the military had got it wrong?
NABIH BULOS, MIDDLE EAST BUREAU CHIEF, "LOS ANGELES TIMES": In truth, almost immediately. Having this incident that happened the day before -- and there was some confusion as to whether it was the same strike that the U.S. military had spoken of it was or another one.
When we arrived the next day, we saw all of these people there and it was instantly clear that it was a number of civilians basically who were there and that this house had no indication of any kind of ISIS-K connection.
And more to the point, the people in the house were actually people who would be targets of ISIS-K, because they had worked with the U.S. and NATO for years. In fact, Zamarai had been working for years with NGOs. So just the idea that this people were connected at all with ISIS-K was ridiculous.
BRUNHUBER: You attended the funeral of all of those children. It must have been heartbreaking. And the certainty with which the military announced this was a, quote, "righteous strike."
And there were no civilian casualties and the secondary explosions indicate the car was full of explosives, it all seems so hollow.
Are you surprised how circumstantial the so-called intelligence was that was relied upon to launch a deadly attack like this?
BULOS: Of course. Mostly the fact they said there was evidence there was a white Corolla. If you spent any time in Kabul, that's like saying someone with brown hair should be targeted. It's ridiculous to say that. Every other car in Kabul is a Corolla. The fact that you say it's a white Corolla means nothing.
BRUNHUBER: What does this suggest for the availability for the U.S. going forward, to launch the over-the-horizon counterterrorism measures in Afghanistan without the on the ground intelligence?
BULOS: It's worth adding even when it was on the ground, it was faulty. And the fact is that we were able to be there because it was in Kabul. But there have been countless strikes in Afghanistan that have gone without any question from the media.
The fact is this doesn't bode well for the notion of over the horizon. I mean at that point, you still had actual drones all the time, all over Kabul and were just monitoring the situation throughout. And they still got it so very, very wrong.
So the idea that now they can do this over the horizon and actually have accurate intelligence, I just don't really see it happening. And the fact is this has been the case for really the last two decades of the U.S.' time in Afghanistan.
BRUNHUBER: And then given that, I imagine it's further shaken many Afghans' faith in the U.S.
What are Afghans saying about this incident?
BULOS: Well, the fact is that for many Afghans, this has been the status quo for decades, as I said. Even before when you had the drone strikes occurring in other parts of the country, it was always based on faulty intelligence.
And more often than not, it hurt the civilians. And so the idea that Afghans had faith in the U.S. to begin with, when it comes to these drone strikes, is already a questionable notion. But more importantly, you add the withdrawal, when you add the -- well, at this point, there were innumerable bad faith moves that had been done by this administration.
And not just the Biden administration, to be clear, but also the ones before in the past. It's just unclear how there can be any faith in the U.S.' words at this point, if you're an Afghan.
BRUNHUBER: Yes, I mean, there has been, you know, an investigation into this. They're going to look into this further.
Do you think that things will change?
Are we likely to see more tragic so-called accidents like this again?
BULOS: Well, the real question is, what sort of responsibility is being taken by the U.S.?
I mean, we heard General Milley say he's taking responsibility.
But who will be reprimanded for this?
And what sort of, I guess, costs will be incurred by the U.S. for what was clearly a horrific mistake?
It's unclear to me there is any change because there are no consequences.
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BULOS: And there hasn't been consequences for so many of these strikes. It's just not clear to me this will be any different. If that's the case, then there will be no change in behavior. I don't
mean to sound so dismissive; it's just that there needs to be some sort of accountability. And there hasn't been for so long.
BRUNHUBER: Well, listen, this underlines the importance of on-the- ground reporting such as yours. Thank you so much, for that and really appreciate you coming on. Nabih Bulos, from the "Los Angeles Times."
BULOS: Thank you for having me.
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JIM SCHMIDT, GABBY PETITO'S STEPFATHER: We have each other right now and we're keeping each other up, remaining strong. You know, we have our moments. We're human. But we're still focused on what we need to do and that's to find her. And we're determined to do that.
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That was Gabby Petito's stepfather, Jim Schmidt, earlier with our Chris Cuomo. The 22-year-old went on a cross-country trip with her fiance, Brian Laundrie, and hasn't been seen since.
Laundrie is now a person of interest. Authorities are searching for him. And a few hours ago, his family called police to his home in Florida and told them they haven't seen him in days. Our Randi Kaye reports from Florida.
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GABBY PETITO, MISSING WOMAN: Hello, hello. Good morning. It is really nice and sunny today.
RANDI KAYE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Twenty two-year-old Gabby Petito in happier times, documenting her travels with her fiance cross country on social media.
PETITO: Gabby, feet up, never goes outside.
KAYE (voice-over): But along the way the trip turned into something else. Police in Moab, Utah, released this body cam video after someone called them August 12th to report disorderly conduct involving Gabby and her fiance, Brian Laundrie.
The police report noted the couple engaged in some sort of altercation. Gabby told police she struggled with OCD.
PETITO: And he wouldn't let me in the car before and then I --
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (INAUDIBLE) in the car?
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PETITO: He told to calm down. Yes. But I'm perfectly calm.
KAYE (voice-over): The police report described her as confused and emotional and manic. The officers didn't file any charges, but suggested the couple separate for the night.
TODD GARRISON, NORTH PORT POLICE: Yes, they added disturbance. Yes, it was captured on body camera their interaction with law enforcement. But beyond that, you know, I don't know what it has to do with the disappearance.
KAYE (voice-over): It all began on July 2nd when the couple set out from New York and Gabby's converted white 2012 Ford Transit van with Florida plates. Their plan according to police was to drive all the way to Yellowstone National Park, but they never made it.
We've also learned Gabby was reportedly last seen at this Salt Lake City hotel on August 24th. That same day, the family's attorney says she Face Timed with her mom telling her she was leaving Utah and heading to the Grand Tetons.
The following day, Gabby texted multiple times with her mom, likely from the Grand Tetons. On August 30th, a final text from Gabby's phone, though the attorney says her family doubts she actually wrote it.
Then on September 1, her fiance showed up at the home he and Gabby shared with his parents in North Port, Florida, in Gabby's white van. Ten days later, on September 11, Gabby's family reported her missing.
GARRISON: Two people went on a trip, one person returned and that person that returned isn't providing us any information.
KAYE (voice-over): Gabby's family is desperate for answers.
JOE PETITO, FATHER OF GABBY PETITO: Whatever you can do to make sure my daughter comes home. I'm asking for that help. There's nothing else that matters to me now. This girl right here, this is what matters. That is it.
KAYE (voice-over): Brian Laundrie, Gabby's fiance isn't talking. He's hired a lawyer and has not spoken with Gabby's family or police. His own sister told ABC, she hasn't even spoken with her brother.
CASSIE LAUNDRIE, SISTER OF BRIAN LAUNDRIE: All I want is for her to come home safe and sound and this could be just a big misunderstanding.
KAYE (voice-over): Cassie Laundrie told ABC her brother and Gabby had been known to fight.
LAUNDRIE: Typical of both of them, they whenever they fight, they will take a little break and come back and be fine.
KAYE (voice-over): The FBI in Denver has also joined the search aiding FBI and local authorities in Wyoming and Utah. But as the hours and days tick by, the search for answers grows and doubts are beginning to creep in.
PETITO: My gut tells me something bad and I never, I'm never going to be able to hold my bead croak. KAYE (voice-over): Right now, it is still a missing person investigation since police have no evidence of a crime.
GARRISON: We don't know what happened.
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GARRISON: You know, we don't know where she's at. We don't know if a crime has been committed.
KAYE (voice-over): Randi Kaye, CNN, North Port, Florida.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BRUNHUBER: Coming up, President Biden's plans to roll out COVID booster shots suffers a major setback. We'll explore why the FDA is advising against widespread use. Stay with us.
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BRUNHUBER: Vaccine advisers to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration aren't recommending Pfizer's COVID booster shot to the general public.
Instead, the committee is recommending a third dose only to people only 65 years and older and those with high risk of severe COVID. The FDA and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention must give still their approval.
While some Americans could soon be eligible for that third shot, millions of people still haven't had their first shot. CNN's Jason Carroll has more on the extreme pressure that some hospitals are facing due to a surge in the COVID unvaccinated.
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JASON CARROLL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Idaho, one of the least vaccinated states, is facing a dire development. Hospitals there are overwhelmed with the number of COVID patients.
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CARROLL (voice-over): So much so, medical officials activated crisis standards of care and will now ration treatment if needed.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Our ICUs are not only full. They're overflowing. The vast majority of our patients in our intensive care units are COVID-positive; 98 percent of them are unvaccinated.
CARROLL: Some Florida emergency rooms also reeling from the effects of unvaccinated patients taxing the system. Nathaniel Osborn says his 12- year-old son's appendix burst while he waited to be seen in a packed emergency room. NATHANIEL OSBORN, FATHER: It was awfully full. You know, my wife and I had to stand while we were waiting. Ended up being six, perhaps 6.5 hours. It was difficult, sitting there with him, kind of watching your child kind of shiver in pain.
CARROLL: Mississippi has now surpassed New Jersey as the state with the highest per capita death toll from COVID-19; 15 pregnant women have died from COVID-19 since the start of the pandemic in that state.
DR. THOMAS DOBBS, MISSISSIPPI STATE HEALTH OFFICER: Very much a tragedy but of that number, eight of them have been lost since the end of July and we do have some details about those moms that are, I think, worth sharing.
The age range is between 23 and 40, with the median age being 30; 60 percent are African American, 100 percent not fully vaccinated.
CARROLL: Meanwhile, the White House today touting vaccine requirements and tying them to the country's economic recovery.
JEFF ZIENTS, WHITE HOUSE COVID-19 RESPONSE COORDINATOR: By increasing the number of workers that are vaccinated, vaccination requirements will keep workplaces safe and help curb the spread of the virus in communities.
That means more Americans getting back to work. It means safer schools and healthier families. It means more consumers dining out and shopping at their local small businesses.
CARROLL: But in New York City Thursday, the latest example of just how combative the issue has become. Three women from Texas were arrested yesterday after assaulting a restaurant hostess who asked them to show their proof of vaccinations, which is now required for indoor dining in New York City.
And this development from the CDC which will released results from a new study in a three-way matchup with the three approved vaccines which basically showed that Moderna fared slightly better than Pfizer in keeping people out of the hospital, followed by Johnson & Johnson.
But look, medical experts say when it comes to getting vaccinated, they say it's best just to go out there and get vaccinated. And any of the approved vaccines will do -- Jason Carroll, CNN, New York.
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BRUNHUBER: Oksana Pyzik is a global health expert at University College London and she joins me now from Geneva.
Thanks so much for being with us.
What do you make of those recommendations?
OKSANA PYZIK, GLOBAL HEALTH EXPERT, UNIVERSITY COLLEGE LONDON: I actually agree with this decision. I think that it is dictated by the data, which shows that there is very good protection still conferred from the vaccine that is -- has been previously given.
So it's actually the decision has been because there's still a good amount of protection for healthy people under the age of 65 with little vaccine waning. And that's been a key metric to take into consideration here. So --
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BRUNHUBER: Can I just jump in because --
PYZIK: -- so the question is what degree of effectiveness --
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BRUNHUBER: Sorry. I just wanted to -- yes, there's a lag there. I just wanted to jump in, when you talk about the data, because there was data from Pfizer saying immunity waned after six months. Israeli scientists presented evidence, supporting the need for boosters.
That wasn't enough?
PYZIK: So that waning was a cross sector. That waning was the highest among (INAUDIBLE) and people (INAUDIBLE) had a (INAUDIBLE) response, that are people who had -- are immunocompromised, et cetera.
But that (INAUDIBLE) waning did not occur among the younger, healthier (INAUDIBLE) patients. So that's one aspect to consider.
And then the metrics (INAUDIBLE) with Sarah Everard symptoms and hospitalizations, so from that perspective, we see that the vaccine has held up to be very effective for those under 65 in terms of preventing severe disease. However, this -- there is a case for those who are especially vulnerable, and those who are over 65 that (INAUDIBLE) protection.
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PYZIK: But the data doesn't support that under that age group.
BRUNHUBER: OK.
So then what about the rest of us?
I mean, Dr. Paul Offit, a vaccine adviser to the FDA, told CNN that the committee was just testing the waters with this decision.
When will we see lower ages included?
Do you have any idea?
PYZIK: Again, that will be all dictated by the degree of benefit, how much extra protection will a third booster give to someone who is relatively young and healthy? And it may not be needed until a year, like we have the flu vaccine
and there could be better models to follow than perpetually boosters. And these models -- but globally, 75 percent of all -- in countries meaning that the low income are the first vaccine -- people who may not need them. And to be distributed elsewhere.
BRUNHUBER: OK. Listen, we're having a bit of audio trouble there, Oksana. But we want to thank you so much for joining us. Oksana Pyzik in Geneva, I appreciate it.
PYZIK: Thank you.
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BRUNHUBER: Turning to Europe. I want to show you the map here, as you can see, COVID has taken a toll on the eastern part of the continent but several countries have been able to open to international visitors.
The tourism industry is praising the U.K. government's plan to relax international travel rules in England. It doesn't cover Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland, just England. Nina dos Santos explains.
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NINA DOS SANTOS, CNNMONEY EUROPE EDITOR: Just after the coronavirus containment plan for later on in the year, they also promised to update travelers on the restrictions to enter the U.K.
Things are going to be simplified as of October the 4th and good news for countries coming off the red list in the U.K. This is a list of nations, deemed risky, in terms of prevalence of COVID-19. As, such people who entered the, shores from these nations, have to go to an immediate, mandatory quarantine period, in a hotel.
But no longer, will that be a case of a return to the U.K. from Turkey, Pakistan, the, Maldives, Egypt, Sri Lanka, Oman, Bangladesh and Kenya.
And, there is good news for travelers who are fully vaccinated against COVID-19. If they have had both of their shots, they will no longer have to take a test before departing upon their journey. They will still have to test upon their return but the government is trying to make that simpler and also, more cost-effective too.
There are plans to remove the current requirement for a polymerase chain reaction or PCR test on day 2, a more sophisticated and expensive but also more accurate COVID-19 test. They will be replacing that with a much cheaper lateral flow test, instead.
But this has been greeted by the airline and the hospitality sector with glee. They have been pummeled over the course of the pandemic by these restrictions being imposed upon travelers, to the U.K.
They said it was the shot in the arm the industry needed and, it could make a real impact, straightaway. These rules are changing just before a crucial travel period, which is the half term holiday for school children, across England.
And, also, it reflects the fact that there is a larger amount of immunity against COVID-19 and the country with 8 in 10 adults, having been vaccinated, in some form, against the virus. And, with plans to roll out the vaccination program, to the next target group, which is 12- to 15-year olds who, as of this week, they were eligible to get one shot of a Pfizer vaccination -- Nina dos Santos, CNN, in London.
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BRUNHUBER: It's almost time for the stars of the small screen to gather in downtown L.A. and take home some serious swag, if not an Emmy. Unlike last year, Sunday's prime time Emmys will be held in front of a live audience. CNN's Stephanie Elam has the inside scoop.
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STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Cedric the Entertainer said television kicked butt. From space suits to hazmat suits and what was mostly a really big virtual meeting, this year's Emmys are shedding some of last year's COVID constraints and getting back to a live audience.
MATTHEW BELLONI, PUCK NEWS FOUNDING PARTNER: People don't want to see award shows on Zoom. They just don't. It takes you away from the experience. They need to see those actors up close. They need to feel like they're at an event with them.
ELAM: Cedric the Entertainer hosts, telling "People" magazine he plans a return of the big opening number.
CEDRIC THE ENTERTAINER, EMMY HOST: We're excited that we're watching a few of these other award shows this weekend, that we're going to elevate the game a little bit.
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ELAM (voice-over): The ceremony will take place in a tent outside in a L.A. theater. Attendees must be fully vaccinated and provide proof they are COVID negative.
What could be similar to last year, a dominant comedy.
Ted Lasso has all of the momentum.
BELLONI: Jason Sudeikis is a star. People know. And it got 20 nominations. However, there is a dark horse. I would you say it is "Hacks," which is a smaller show on HBO Max and it is a very insider Hollywood show that people who vote for these type of awards may gravitate towards.
ELAM: On the drama side, "The Crown" could take the Emmy.
BELLONI: "The Crown" is one of the great achievements of television of all time and it has never won the series Emmy. ELAM: Real life drama could factor into the ceremony with the death of Michael K. Williams, who became a star in "The Wire." this year, he's nominated for another nuanced performance, though Emmy votes were cast before his death.
BELLONI: And he wasn't even nominated for playing one of the most iconic characters of all time. He's been a great character, actor for two decades now. And the fact that he's never won an Emmy is kind of crazy. So people thought he might win for "Lovecraft Country" this year.
ELAM: The Emmys move to CBS, where a football lead-in could lift it above last year's record low ratings. Of course, the Emmys will be the first big test for an awards show, to see if they can get people to tune back in, now that the world has opened back up -- in Hollywood, I'm Stephanie Elam.
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BRUNHUBER: All right, thanks so much for watching. I'm Kim Brunhuber. For viewers in the U.S., "NEW DAY SATURDAY" is next. For international viewers, it's "MARKETPLACE ASIA."
