MSNBC host Joy Reid has demanded that unvaccinated Americans should be taxed higher for not getting the Covid jab.
The commentator, 53, made the remarks on her show The ReidOut on Wednesday afternoon.
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Reid told viewers: “At some point, I feel like people who are wilfully unvaccinated, fine, don’t get vaccinated.
“But they need to start to pay a little more of the cost of what this is doing to our system.”
The presenter was heavily criticized and slammed on Twitter for her remarks.
One said: “Ohhh, Joy, you may want to think this one through (for once).”
While another quipped: “You know what… come to my house and try to TAX my freedom.”
A third user wrote: "She's asking for segregation and fines on a minority.. f***ing irony I tell you."
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But, some social media users said they agreed with Reid as the host's remarks sparked a flurry of discussion online.
As it stands, the federal government has not made Covid-19 vaccinations compulsory for the American public.
But, earlier this week, the Biden Administration said that federal agencies should implement weekly Covid testing for unvaccinated government employees that are working on-site, Reuters reports.
Around 3.5million federal workers were required to be fully vaccinated by November 22 as part of a mandate imposed by the White House.
Unvaccinated federal workers were warned that they faced potential disciplinary measures if they refused to get the jab.
Last month, data revealed that around 92 percent of employees had received at least one vaccine dose.
The mandate doesn’t apply to workers in the judiciary, legislature, or the US Postal Service.
'IN THE MIDST OF A SURGE'
Biden is set to reveal that the federal government is ordering another 500million at-home Covid tests.
It will bring the number to one billion but it’s not known when Americans will receive the testing kits.
Meanwhile, vice president Kamala Harris told the Today show that tests will be distributed “shortly”.
She added: “I think it’s going to be by next week but soon, absolutely soon, and it is a matter of urgency for us.
"Every day it is time for us to agree that there are things and tools that are available to us to slow this thing down. We are in the midst of a surge."
The White House is ramping up efforts to "surge" military medical personnel to help overwhelmed health facilities mitigate the effects of Omicron.
Hospitals across the country are struggling because of staff shortages as workers are forced to quarantine due to the virus.
Janet Woodco*ck, of the Food and Drug Administration, warned lawmakers in Congress that Omicron will infect “most people”, theAssociated Pressreports.
She said: “I think it’s hard to process what’s actually happening right now, which is: Most people are going to get COVID, all right?
'RAMPING UP'
“What we need to do is make sure the hospitals can still function — transportation, other essential services are not disrupted while this happens.”
AndAnthony Fauci, Biden's top health chief, warned that Omicron will “ultimately find just about everybody”,CNNreports.
He told J. Stephen Morrison, of the Center for Strategic and International Studies: “Those who have been vaccinated and boosted would get exposed.
“Some, maybe a lot of them, will get infected but will very likely, with some exemptions do reasonable well in the sense of not having hospitalization and death.”
It was reported that more than 145,000 people were in hospitals with Covid across the country on Tuesday.
It’s a higher statistic than the previous peak of 142,246 reported last January, according to data from the US Department of Health and Human Services.
More than 754,000 daily Covid-19 cases have been reported on average over the past week, Johns Hopkins University data reveals.
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Omicron accounts for 98.3 percent of new infections, according to estimates published by theCenters for Disease Control and Prevention.
But, only 23 percent of Americans have received both vaccine doses and are boosted.
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Vaccine effectiveness & Omicron
Expert studies have shown that the risk of severe illness from Covid-19 is reduced by 90 percent or more among people who are fully vaccinated.
While there are breakthrough cases of Covid among people who are vaccinated, they are rare.
In the event of a breakthrough case, victims are highly unlikely to be hospitalized with severe or deadly symptoms from the virus.
Health officials have advised that the Omicron variant is more infectious and could lead to further breakthrough cases.
Yet the spread can be offset by all vaccinated Americans receiving a booster shot.
Current vaccines are expected to protect against severe illness, hospitalizations, and deaths due to infection with the Omicron variant.
With other variants, like Delta, vaccines have remained effective at preventing severe illness, hospitalizations, and death.
Studies have also shown that side effects from the vaccine are extremely rare.
Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
