President Joe Biden touted the progress his administration has made in battling COVID-19 Thursday, as he stressed the need to continue vaccinating Americans who have not yet received their shots.
"We're making progress. Nationally, daily cases are down 47%. Hospitalizations are down 38% over the past six weeks," President Biden said in White House remarks. "It's important progress, but now's not the time to let up. We have a lot more to do," he added.
The president spoke out against misinformation surrounding COVID-19 vaccination mandates, and continued to encourage the approximately 66 million unvaccinated Americans to get a shot.
He said employer requirements that their workers be vaccinated are effective and underscored that "vaccination requirements should not be another issue that divides us."
President Biden has issued a federal vaccine mandate on businesses with 100 or more employees that will be implemented in the coming weeks.
He says the federal government, as well as businesses and community groups, must "continue to battle the misinformation that's out there."
He noted both Southwest Airlines and its pilots' union dismissed claims that worker action over a pending vaccine mandate at the company was responsible for days of disruption at the airline.
Additional reporting by the Associated Press.
