that degree of a surge where you re talking about 100 million cases over the fall and winter. remember, when omicron hit in its big peak, about 30% of the country got infected. that was a really big surge there, so even though we re not sure what s going to happen, you can make some broad estimates. there s a new report that says better vaccination ratesicate have prevented half of the u.s. covid deaths since the vaccine was available early 2021. only 66% of the country right now is fully vaccinated, meaning about a third of the country is not. even fewer americans, just over 100 million people in the u.s., have gotten the vaccine and a booster. there s not one state in the united states that has reached 50% mark on boosters. it is hard to argue that the public education part of the vaccine campaign has completely worked. yet i still don t see evidence that the government is using creative ways to reach people who refuse to get vaccinated such as using donald trump s
quickly as possible. that s the candid, honest answer. now, when cnn asked the white house yesterday whether there is federal guidance for parents who can t find baby formula in stores, we didn t get a good answer from the white house, but moments ago, the white house announcing there is now a new website that is hhs.gov/formula that has some basic information on what parents can do, but jake, i think it is so important to emphasize the reason that there is such intense panic and desperation with parents is because there is no good substitute for formula or breast milk. this is why we re seeing some parents across the country asking questions like, is it safe to make formula at home? is it safe to dilute formula? and the answer is no to both of those questions, jake. mj lee reporting live for us from the white house, thank you so much. cnn s senior medical correspondent elizabeth cohen joins us live. stores across the country have had a hard time keeping formula in stock for mont
attacking a procession for a slain palestinian american journalist. hello, and welcome to the lead. i m jake tapper. if you re the parent of an infant and you rely on formula for your baby s nutrition and survival, empty store shelves have become a frustratingly familiar sight. this is in minnesota today, but it s all over the country. few choices at a pharmacy in atlanta, just a few hours ago, and this afternoon in alexandria, virginia, literally across the river from where lawmakers are currently wringing their hands and making speeches about the shortage. nothing. what s left in stock, that s actually formulated for toddlers, not for infants. parents from coast to coast panic texting their relatives asking them to check stores in their neighborhoods. what s that? no luck. they go to the local parent facebook group, pleading for help. along with every other parent in the facebook group.
the fda in actually finding the issues with that plant in michigan. and i think it is important for the president to look at the defense production act and other ways to really increase the supply of baby food formula right here. but listen, if you re a parent, i know, you know, if you re a parent, this is a crisis, and i sympathize with parents across the country. this is hardly the first time that there s this slow rolling anticipated disaster happening exactly as forewarned, whether it s the exit from afghanistan, the border surge, the biden administration does not want to call this a crisis. you just called it a crisis. it s a crisis, right? i mean, i think if you re a parent that can t get formula for your kid, it s a crisis. i think that i was trying to explain all the different factors because i don t think it s true that we can t access this baby formula. we can make some changes. we re going do some things to give more flexibility to the wic
can it be fixed? it is bad. we re talking to parents who are in tears searching for formula for their babies. let s take a look at these numbers. as you mentioned, 43% out of stock rate across the country, according to data sembly. if you look at these eight cities and these metro yare as if we look at the week ending may 8, it was 50%. more than half of the formula that should have been there was actually there. this is not going to be solved quickly. it s going to be abbott s plant in michigan that got closed down, it s going to be at least six to eight weeks until they can reopen and start making product again. but let s talk about what abbott and the white house say that they re doing to help alleviate this. abbott has air shipped millions of cans of formula from its plant in ireland and it s also switching manufacturing lines from other products to formula to prioritize formula skrx the white house says that they re working to increase u.s. manufacturing and importing. again, pa