Despite an increase in respiratory illnesses and low vaccination rates for the most recent Covid-19 vaccine, Americans should still get together to celebrate the holidays, White House Coronavirus Response Coordinator Ashish Jha said on ABC’s “This Week” on Sunday.

Jha asserted, as previous Biden administration officials have done, that the necessary technologies are available to manage the virus. “We’re at a place where it’s safe to congregate, but you still have things to do,” Jha said.

It is evident that things could become lot worse if you don’t take those actions.

Testing, treatment, and taking the current booster are some of these steps. According to Jha, everyone who hasn’t had a Covid-19 shot in the past six months should obtain the most recent booster.

Although host Martha Raddatz highlighted masking as a mitigating tactic, the doctor did not mention it as a component of the current approach against the infection.

Jha emphasised that “people are gathering throughout the holidays, as they should.”

Given the spikes over the previous two winters, the White House representative said he was “not wholly astonished” by a recent increase in Covid-19 cases. He also stated that only 14 percent of Americans who were eligible as of last week received the most recent booster shot.

Jha noted that although demand for some medications for respiratory infections has been “exceptional,” the apparent fall in RSV cases—another virus that recently peaked—could help the situation.

Following an increase in instances in recent weeks, the White House last week relaunched its programme that enables Americans to buy free at-home Covid-19 testing kits. The first week of December saw an uptick in Covid-19 deaths as well, marking the first weekly increase since August.

The Biden administration has recently lamented having to cut back on preventative measures as a result of Congress’ refusal to allocate as much funds to mitigate COVID as the White House had asked.