administration is taking a closer look at the effectiveness of at-home antigen tests. the tests are still beneficial. our reporters are covering the developments from london to beijing. tom foreman has our lead story, reporting in from washington. >> reporter: nationwide, hospitalizations of children with covid are up, on average, nearly 50% in just one week. new york city is seeing pediatric admissions jump to five-times what they were. in washington, d.c., half the kids coming to children's national hospital are testing positive. all told, an average of more than 300 children are being hospitalized each day. that's not because current variants are uniquely targeting them but because -- >> we see children that are hospitalized because of covid, or icu because of covid, they're unvaccinated. they're unvaccinated, the parents are unvaccinated, the siblings are unvaccinated. >> reporter: others fear the return to school next week could be even worse. >> i think what we're going to see is once children go back to school, within a week or two of schools opening, is when we see the highest numbers. >> reporter: amid the winter weather, the pandemic is roaring across the country, with 250,000 new cases diagnosed daily, that's a record. >> this variant is a game-changer in terms of its high, high transmissability. it's like a virus blizzard. >> reporter: hospitalizations are half of what they were last winter. but some are seeing peaks there, too. and more vaccinated medical workers are experiencing breakthrough cases and being sent home just when demand for their expertise is soaring. >> that's an impossible strain on an already-strained health care system. i understand the pressure to get workers back earlier. >> reporter: the virus is spreading so fast, the impact is going beyond the widely recorded holiday travel problems. in new york city, apple has closed all its stores to browsing shoppers. in maryland, courts are cutting back the winter schedule. and everywhere, health officials are fretting over the long lines for testing. >> i think that's going to be a significant challenge. if we can overcome the supply challenge and the cost challenge, that will help us tremendously. >> reporter: some think the cdc's new recommendation of a five-day isolation period for some people infected, may help with all of the challenges by getting more people back on the job. others fear this is so daunting, there's little we can do other than watch the numbers climb for a while. tom foreman, cnn, washington. peter chinhong is a specialty disease doctor from the university of california. thank you for being with us. >> my pleasure. thanks for having me on. >> one thing with certainty we can say, with omicron, a lot more people will be infected. listen to dr. aziz, from brown university of public health. listen to this. >> people should brace themselves for a month. a lot of people will get infected. a lot of people unvaccinated. a lot of people without the vaccine will get pretty sick. and it will be disruptive. my hope is by the time we get into february and march, infections will be way down. and it also will be spring and the weather will start getting better and that will help. late winter, early spring, should be better. >> with the hospitalization rate because of omicron and delta, we're in the calm before the storm. what do you think? >> some people think we're already in the middle of the storm. the question is, how long the storm will last. it's like you're in a hurricane and you're trying to fix a roof. in the west, we're trying to brace ourselves. the anxiety i have is not necessarily about sick people going to the hospital. but probably more for the workforce that will get infected. even with the shortened isolation time of five days, in places like quebec, they're saying if you are a health care worker, you should show up. all of that is possible inside the united states. >> and you are saying they will send health care workers if they're positive? >> i'm concerned there's several reasons why i'm concerned. i'm concerned for potential infection risk of vulnerable patients, even through the masks. i'm concerned mainly for the morale. the health care workforce has been decimated with more injuries minutes. 20% of m.d.s say they will leave the job within a year. that's unprecedented. >> south africa first identified the omicron variant. not only do they have an immune response against omicron, we saw the same people developed enhanced immunity to the delta variant. the incidence of covid-19 would be reduced and the infections may shift and become less disruptive to individuals and society. sounds like they are saying the pandemic might come to an end. >> possibly, john. that's optimistic end to the story. i think there's a lot of plausibility from that finding. you can fend yourself and protect yourself, against the more dastardly delta. that's speaking about the now. what's not clear is whether or not the next variant, by natural selection, you would expect to be more evasive to the antibodies and milder, as well. you look at the 1918 influenza pandemic, it ended because of increasing immunity in a population with waves of infection. also, a milder variant or a milder through. that's what we can hope for. at the end of the day, maybe we're faced with a situation where you get a variant once a year. some people are infected. some have anti-bodice. the next year, you have another variant. we'll see this again, until enough of the world is immunized. it protects against hospitalizations and death, regardless of the variant. i think it will come to an end that quickly. >> to take the comments from sir john bell. and the newspaper is reporting this is not the same disease we were seeing a year ago. there's death and hospitalization, but that applies to symptoms, as well. here's how it was described by one patient who recently tested positive. >> good morning. so, i just wanted you to hear from me that i tested positive this morning for covid. my symptoms are a cold, a scratchy throat and a bit of a runny nose. but i'm fine. >> if you couldn't guess, that was hugh jackman. all of this, the similar symptoms to cold and flu, it's adding to another layer of confusion. the one thing that could end the confusion, home testing kits. >> exactly. even though president biden has promised 500,000 home testing kits for three, that sounds like a lot. but it's not right now. the u.s. has 30 million people. 1 1/2 tests isn't enough, to do testing as frequently as brushing your teeth once again. a shortage of tests is not going to help or mitigate events and possibly prevent a surge happening. they also keep kids in school. that rapid testing can't be underim underemphasized. some estimates of flew are in the order of 100,000 to 400,000 additional hospitalizations. we haven't peaked with influenza yet. that confusion is going to send us potentially into a tailspin. but there's a silver lining, which is, we're going to have all occasions for covid. i think that could add together with tamiflu. but helping people, unvaccinated people, avoid hospitalizations. >> two steps forward, two steps back. thank you for being with us. we appreciate it. >> thanks so much. when we come back, he was a boxer-turned-policeman, who took on the mob. he is one of the powerful leaders. the life and the legacy of the late harry reid. and playing respects to the nfl coach and broadcaster. contributes to the late john madden. 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>> that's what people think, that's what they think. >> reporter: as senate democratic leader, reid was a polarizing figure. republicans argued a lot of gridlock stood from his tactics. but he reveled playing the political bad guy, calling then president george w. bush a loser and a liar, well before politicians used the "l" words. >> i don't care. i don't want to be somebody i'm not. >> reporter: during the trump presidency, reid changed his tune about bush. >> in hindsight, i wish every day for a george bush again. he and i had our differences. but no one questioned his patriotism. there's no question min my mind. that george bush would be babe ruth in the example of donald trump. donald trump wouldn't make the team. >> reporter: in 2012, he used the senate floor of accusing mitt romney of not paying his taxes, even though he had no evidence. >> he has refused to release his tax returns. let him show his tax returns because he hasn't. >> reporter: some called it mccarthyite. >> well, they can call it whatever they want. he didn't win, did he? >> reporter: years later, reid asked to meet with romney to make amends. >> shook hands. >> reporter: why was it important for you to tie up the loose end? >> i try to do that with everybody. >> reporter: reid inspired fierce loyalty from many of his long-time aides and fellow senators. not out of fear but affection. he often told colleagues i love you, even in public. he had a storybook romance with his wife, his high school sweetheart. the two converted to mormonism when they married. >> she had a pair of levi's on. she looked so good. it's true. >> reporter: in january 2015, reid, a workout addict, who ran numerous marathons had a brutal exercise accident that left him bruised and blind in one eye. it cemented his decision to retire. a few years later, he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. the effects of chemo made it hard for him to walk. we went to see him in las vegas. >> that's one of my keepsakes from donald trump. >> reporter: never any complaints. >> i'm doing fine. i'm busy. i work quite hard. >> reporter: reid was an unlikely political leader in today's media age, soft-spoken and gaffe-prone. but he played the inside game like no one could. >> i didn't make it in life because of my athletic prowess. i didn't make it because of my good looks. i didn't make it because i'm a genius. i made it because i work hard. one of the things i hope that people look back at me and say, if harry reid can make it, i can. the world of american football is mourning the loss of veteran broadcaster, the face of a video game, and a hall of fame coach. john madden loomed large over the nfl for decades. and his boisterous style that will be missed by fans and viewers alike. he was the name sakes of the madden series. roger goodell is honoring madden saying, nobody loves football more than coach. he was football. he was a sounding board for me and others. there will never be another john madden. we will be endebted to him for making football and the nfl what it is. the entire pro football hall of fame, our family mourns coach madden. few had the impact on professional football, on so many different levels, as coach madden. a coach on the field, a coach in the broadcast booth and a coach in life. we'll take a break. when we come back, a coming new year will likely bring old pandemic restrictions for many parts of europe. and coping with omicron. how health care workers in south africa are adapting to the variant of concern. what a glimpse into the future of many countries. i'm greg, i'm 68 years old. i do motivational speaking in addition to the substitute teaching. i honestly feel that that's my calling-- to give back to younger people. i think most adults will start realizing that they don't recall things as quickly as they used to or they don't remember things as vividly as they once did. i've been taking prevagen for about three years now. people say to me periodically, "man, you've got a memory like an elephant." it's really, really helped me tremendously. prevagen. healthier brain. better life. ♪ limu emu... & doug ♪ ♪ superpowers from a spider bite? 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(gasps) ♪ did it work? only pay for what you need ♪ liberty. liberty. liberty. liberty. ♪ spider-man no way home in theaters december 17th this is elodia. she's a recording artist. 1 of 10 million people that comcast has connected to affordable internet in the last 10 years. and this is emmanuel, a future recording artist, and one of the millions of students we're connecting throughout the next 10. through projectup, comcast is committing $1 billion so millions more students, past... and present, can continue to get the tools they need to build a future of unlimited possibilities. welcome back to our viewers in the united states and around the world. i'm john vause. the latest on our lead story. covid infections are soaring across most of the university, fueled by the omicron variant. the national average of 265,000 new cases a day, a record-breaking high. the cdc says omicron accounts for 60% of infections. more children are being admitted because of omicron. we're looking at the effectiveness of antigen tests that could be less sensitive to the omicron variant. that should not discourage anyone from using the tests. spain reporting 100,000 new cases on tuesday alone. the highest one-day total since the pandemic began, double the previous record set just last week. not just spain. the countries in dark red on this map have seen cases rise by 50% or more in the past week, compared to the week before. more travel disruptions have left some passengers stranded in airlines across the globe. airlines are facing dropping demand, with the fear of the omicron variant and staff shortages. some airline staff calling out sick themselves. it comes as the omicron variant spread continues at record rates. both france and the u.k. finding record-breaking infection rates, driven largely again by the omicron variant. but each country taking a different approach as to how to handle the surge. here in the u.k., three of the four nations have imposed some restrictions ahead of new year's eve. prime minister boris johnson an doesn't need tougher measures. >> we look at the data on a daily basis. that hasn't changed. there's no further medses before the new year. we are taking measures, people should remain cautious, as we approach new year's celebrations. scelebrate outside, if you can. ventilation indoors, if you can. remain cautious. as we get into the new year, we will see if we need to make further measures. >> reporter: the french government will not put in place lockdowns or curfews. ahead of new year's eve, there's tougher restrictions ahead in the new year. authorities are warning everyone there to be cautious. and multiple cities are cancelling new year's eve celebrations here. in london, the trafalgar square celebrations are canceled, other cities, rome, cancelling the traditional fireworks celebrations as the surge of omicron cases continues. there's been backlash against some of the restrictions with protests seen in recent days in germany, against stuffer measures, those who don't want to see tough rules come into place with the omicron variant. another new year's eve will be in the shadow of covid. to china, and day six of a brutal lockdown of the city of xian. we go live to beijing. this is one of the toughest -- second-tier toughest, levels of lockdown. now, there's issues of access to basic supplies. it's becoming harder and that's driving anger and frustration in the city. >> reporter: that's right, john. this is almost a deja vu what we saw in wuhan two years ago. there's anger being vented online by users in xian, saying they have growing challenges getting produce. that's in sharp contrast to what officials and state media have been portraying in orderly and smooth delivery of the necessity items throughout the city since the lockdown began last week. the situation has been made worse because last week, they were allowing each household to send out a representative every other day to do grocery shops. that's been restricted this week, as they try to curb the community spread of this virus. because of the beijing's leadership insistence of the zero tolerance of the covid policy. from their perspective, the policy has been working well, with officials pointing to the fast spread of omicron outside of china's borders. you see them doubling down on mass testing and quarantine, and harsher lockdown measures, as well. 151 new local cases on tuesday. but officials say, as this lockdown -- with that lockdown firmly in place, they are going to bring this outbreak to an end, within a month or so, and the numbers will be stabilizing soon and start decreasing. this is, of course, what they are saying for a while. and they have just started a round of citywide testing for 13 million residents. they say, things will get better soon. this kind of assessment and remarks, obviously, very cold comfort for millions of residents trying to survive under this brutal lockdown. >> and there's no declared end when this is going to be over. it will keep going and going, until they get this under control. who knows when that will be. around the world, the highly contagious omicron outbreak is bringing new fears and uncertainty over what is yet to come. in south africa, where the variant was first detected, new infections are falling and there's good reason to believe the worst has passed. dana mckenzie has the front line workers who have been on the front lines of the new wave of the pandemic. >> reporter: dispatched south of johannesburg, he says omicron is nothing like delta. >> during then, covid, covid, covid. nothing else. are you able to walk, sir? >> reporter: we were with them during the chaos, when the delta wave ripped through south africa. severe patients crashed quickly. the team spent hours looking for hospital beds. charities rushed to set up clinics and scrambled to save lives. with omicron, they say they haven't sent out a single one. >> it's a patient complaining of tightness in chest. >> reporter: the callouts are for less severe patients. like this 46-year-old who tested negative but is suspected of having covid. >> after five minutes, check the chest. >> reporter: there's been a surge of cases with omicron. but not a surge of hospitalization p this callout is typical. what advice do you have for other countries that are facing an omicron wave? >> don't panic. this is -- you will ride the wave. part of the people being admitted, despite the high numbers of cases. high transmission of people getting mild illness, not even getting diagnosed at home. >> reporter: it's unclear why it's seemingly milder or whether that will translate globally. scientists believe up to 80% of the population in south africa may have had covid-19 before. likely providing a shield of immunity. >> this would have been a nightmare if it was delta. i think we can be grateful that it has not been as devastating as it could have been. >> but there's still reason to be cautious, it seems. >> yeah. we are learned you never let the gourd down. >> reporter: there's hope. >> i'm actually quite optimistic about it. >> reporter: david mackenzie, cnn, johannesburg. >> that hope may be tempered by a recent study from colombia, university, which says the omicron variant can evade protections from vaccines and infection. that's why they say new vaccines are crucial. the report warns it is not too far-fetched to think that covid is a mutation or two away from being completely resistance to current antibodies. amber moine. >> it's nice to be here. thanks for having me. >> david holmes was behind that study at colombia. and the variants have been able to resist up until now. >> it turns out that previous variants only resist ed two majr classes of antibody. omicron resisted now all of the classes of antibodies directed to the spike of this virus. >> i know this is in the weeds here. but what does he actually mean here? and why is this so concerning? >> well, this study is a confirmation of what scientists were warning about from the beginning when they first discovered omicron and saw so many mutations on the spike protein. this virus can evade vaccines. that's what we're seeing playing out in real-time. we're seeing the breakthrough infections globally. also, reinfections that they wrned about in this particular report, as well. they did a series of studies to confirm this fear that we all have there's going to be immune evasion. they tested to look to see if the antibodies being used early on in infection, are able to work against omicron. they found it was something disturbing in this report, was that many of those antibodies, all of the monocoronal aebt antibodies had less effectiveness. it's a combination of what we know. also a warning sign, in future we could see variants emerge that will have more immune escape. right now, the vaccines are doing a good job of protecting us from severe disease, hospitalization and death. that's an excellent sign. however, what we are seeing is that with the trend, we could see something more dangerous in the future. >> the doomsday variant, that so many talk about. right now, we're way behind in knowing the evolutionary track of the virus. we need to get in front of it. how do we do that? >> we talked about this before. what we need to do, is get vaccines distributed globally. we need to ensure that we are all vaccinated. and that we don't give this virus the opportunity to spread further. that's always the thing that we worry about when this virus has an opportunity to spread. it has an opportunity to mutate. it will have the opportunity to develop into a new variant like the one we're seeing right now. getting vaccines in arms globally, to increase the immunity we have and not let the virus spread further. >> is it that each mutation is a roll of the dice? this is how the pandemic ends with a coronavirus with mild symptoms, or the doomsday variant that we have no protection from. >> we really don't know where this is going to go. so, we can't predict. what we need to do is make sure we get as many vaccines in arms, vaccines out globally. and make sure that we don't give this virus an opportunity to spread. >> there's the mystery of where omicron came from. one possibility, the theory goes that some kind of animal, potentially rodents, was infected some time in mid-2020. in the new species, the virus e involved with 50 knewations, spilling back over into people. can we get rid of this strain if we don't know where it came from? >> i don't think the issue is where it actually came from. there's multiple scenarios here. we don't have an answer at this point. and it doesn't matter from where we stand right now. the theories are, it could have spilled over from an animal. we could have had the original variant go back into an animal and pass back into humans. it could have come from somebody that is immuno compromised. that gives the time for the virus to mutate. it could have been circulating and picked up more and more mutations overtime. we can't worry about where it came from. what we can worry about is how do we get in front of it? that is back to the question of how do we get in front of it? we vaccinate the world. >> the same answer to all of it. we know what the answer is and what to do, we just have to do it. thank you. good to see you. >> my pleasure. it will be a socially distanced and quiet new year's eve, with many cities cancelling or restricting celebrations because of surging number of covid restrictions. contact restrictions will be in effect december 28th in germany. new year's eve celebrations of ten or more people is forbidden. in london, trafalgar square, canceled. all of the gatherings in deli bars and restaurants. and the celebration concert in rio canceled. the fireworks display will go on. spain, one of the few european countries where celebrations will take place. madrid will hold an event up to 7,000 people. hong kong police, at a pro-democracy news outlet. we're live in hong kong with the latest. you're never responsible for unauthorized purchases on your discover card. i've always been running. to meetings. errands. now i'm running for me. i'vi've always dreamedng. tof seeing the world. but i'm not chasing my dream anymore. i made a financial plan to live it everyay. ♪ at northwestern mutual, our version of financial planning helps you live your dreams today. find a northwestern mutual advisor at nm.com in bolivia, dozens have been airlifted to safety. 55 municipalities with heavy downpours left people dead. one situation is described as critical with more rain in the forecast and rivers continuing to break their banks. hong kong police have arrested six associates of the pro-democracy outlet. officials say this is been accused of publishing material. police visited the home of a seventh employee, led away we officers. he was not arrested. the company's offices have been raided by police who have collected 30 boxes filled with evidence. ivan watson joins us outside of the offices that were raided. what do they got? what did they take away? >> reporter: well, as of now, i think certainly the journalistic community here in hong kong is reeling from the arrest of the six individuals, from the raids that took place on the top floor of this building here. it was one of the last independent voices left in this british colony. with the security and the police saying the six people arrested, this was under charges of, quote, conspiracy to publish malicious publications. and they were authorized under the guidelines to search and seize relevant journalistic materials. among the six people arrested, is a pop star from hong kong, a woman named denise ho, who is an outspoken critic of the hong kong government and the chinese government in mainland china. she was detained and had a concert with stand news. the journalistic organization came out expressing concern about this. the hong kong journalistic association is concerned that the police have arrested senior members of the media and searched the offices of news organizations containing large quantities of journalistic materials within a year. and it urges the government to respect press freedom under the basic law. one of the women that wasn't arrested but detained at his home at 6:00 in the morning, is one of the editors of stand news, he happens to be the head of the journalism association. and just last night, that association had a dinner for members. and he had almost this sad plea about what many perceived to be the diminishing space for consent and freedom in the city. take a listen. >> translator: hong kong will always need the truth, as well as journalists. no matter how difficult the road ahead will be, the association will thrive to never fail, facing an uncertain path before us. we have nothing else to ask, but of the friends of the association to continue to support us. this is our tiniest hope. >> reporter: now, he has since been released by the police. some of his personal effects, phones, laptops, ipads, have been taken by police. he briefly visited the offices here. if you take the position of the government and beijing, by extension, they would argue that the arrests they conducted over the last year, and we with talk about that further, john, are part of an effort to bring the city under control, since the widespread street protests against the government in 2019. just a few days before christmas, hong kong's top official met with xi, the chinese president, and patted each other on the back, or as they described it, getting hong kong under control. take a listen. >> translator: over the last year, hong kong continued to con sal late from chaos under control. and the situation has continued to improve. >> so, the government argues this is getting this city under control. activists, press freedom journal iftds, would argue, this is taking away freedom. back to you, john. >> that's what it sounds like, ivan. ivan watson, live for us in hong kong. well, when we come back, officials in virginia have opened a second time capsule. what was inside? we'll tell you. new information on hotep the first, using scanning, they glimpsed underneath the facemask and bandages. the mummy is 3500 years old. the mummy may have been me repad by priests after being damaged by tomb raiders. and some items dating back to the american civil war found in a time capsule. randi kaye has the details. >> reporter: it wasn't easy, but conservators in richmond, virginia drilled their way into this time capsule that's more than 100 years old. >> we're going to cut down one side of the box where i won't hit anything and relieve some of the pressure. >> reporter: the capsule was discovered monday beneath the base of the robert e. lee statue, months after this historic moment. the 134-year-old time capsule is made of copper. and according to the richmond dispatch newspaper from 1887, is supposed to contain at least 60 items. this x-ray taken after its discovery, offered the first images. items inside were said to include a battle flag, compass, 12 copper coins, cop fed rat buttons, even a picture of former president lincoln lying in his coffin. only one photo of the casket still exists. and the conditions inside the capsule aren't ideal. >> there is a lot of water to squeeze out of it. maybe a little more wet than we hoped for. >> reporter: one of the first items pulled out, a coin. >> the coin says 1883. appears to be silver, united states. >> reporter: as conservation experts dug deeper -- >> what we're seeing is 1881 by daniel murphy. >> reporter: also a masonic flag carved out of wood. and this 1884 commemorative ribbon featuring robert e. lee. many of the items inside were stuck together, especially the books. making them difficult to identify and extract without ruining them. >> even though we've cleared out a section, they're still stuck together. r >> reporter: the governor proproud ly tweeted, they found it, but they thought they had found it a week ago. after hours of work opening that one, they realized that time capsule was not the one they had been looking for. it was made of lead, not copper. and only contained a handful of items, including a few books, envelope and coin. in the latest capsule, there was at least one bullet, newspapers, books, and -- >> a naval symbol on it. this coin says 1853. >> reporter: conservators are still documenting the items and comparing them to the list published in that 1887 newspaper. but so far, no picture of lincoln in his casket. they did find a photo from "harper's weekly" of someone weeping at lincoln's grave. >> it was perhaps taken from a photograph, but it is an engraving in a newspaper. so the newspaper was from 1865 from what we can tell, unless it was a reprint, which has happened. so there's really -- there was no photograph per se. >> reporter: randi kaye, cnn. >> second time is a charm. thank you for watching "cnn newsroom." i'm john vause. "cnn newsroom" continues after a short break with my colleague and friend, ms. paula newton. see you back here tomorrow. ...d your great-grandmother to the world. your family story y is waiting to be discovered, and now you can search for those fascinating detailss for free—at ancestry. we envisioned at times that we would lose one of our facilities. breaking news. but we never envisioned even in a pandemic that we might lose them all. our engineers and operations team worked with cisco to do whatever's necessary and bring whatever tools we have to bring to tell the best story. between what's news and what's now, there's a bridge. cisco. the bridge to possible. what does a foster kid need from you? to be brave. to show up. for staying connected. the questions they weren't able to ask. show up for the first day of school, the last day at their current address. for the mornings when everything's wrong. for the manicure that makes everything right, for right now. show up, however you can, for the foster kids who need it most— at helpfosterchildren.com switching wireless carriers is easy with xfinity. just lean on our helpful switch squad for the foster kids who need it most— to help you save with xfinity mobile. they can help break up with your current carrier for you and transfer your info to your new phone. giving you a fast and easy experience that can save you hundreds a year on your wireless bill. visit your nearest xfinity store and see how the switch squad can help you switch and save. get $200 off a new eligible 5g phone when you switch to xfinity mobile. talk with our helpful switch squad at your local xfinity store today. hello and a warm welcome to our viewers here in the united states and around the world. i'm paula newton. ahead, daily u.s. covid cases hit an all-time high as the omicron variant fuels yet another wave. hospitals are filling up fast, and experts fear the peak is yet to come. mourning the loss of an american political icon, we look at the legacy of former democratic senator harry reid and joe biden faces a number of challenges heading into the new year. where things stand now and what to expect in 2022. ♪ ♪ so it has now been nearly two years since the first covid case was confirmed in the united states.