Surgeon general ‘concerned about what we’re seeing’ as COVID-19 cases surge

Surgeon General Vivek Murthy said in an interview on Sunday that he is concerned about the recent COVID-19 case surge in the country. 

“Well….Chris, I’m concerned about what we’re seeing in the country right now,” Murthy told host Chris Wallace on “Fox News Sunday.”

“We are seeing increases in cases, particularly in parts of the country where the vaccination rates are low,” Murthy added.

Murthy also noted that people who are fully vaccinated still have a high degree of immunity from hospitalization and deaths, adding that 99.5 percent of are COVID-19 deaths are from those who weren’t vaccinated. 

His comments come as COVID-19 cases rise in almost every state, driven by the more-contagious delta variant.

When asked on Sunday about the Biden administration calling out social media platform Facebook over false misinformation,  Murthy said that Americans need accurate information. 

“And with all of us have the right to accurate information, so we can make the right decisions for us and for our families…because that is the reality for too many people,” Murthy told Wallace. “And they’re inundated with misinformation and all of us, technology companies, individuals, healthcare professionals and government have rules that they can play in addressing and slowing the spread of misinformation.”

Last week, Facebook criticized President Biden and top administration officials over remarks that social media companies are not doing enough to combat coronavirus vaccine misinformation, accusing the White House of “looking for scapegoats for missing their vaccine goals.”

Biden told reporters on Friday that Facebook and other platforms were “killing people” by allowing vaccine misinformation to spread.

A Facebook spokesperson initially pushed back against the White House in a statement, saying the company “will not be distracted by accusations which aren’t supported by the facts.”