The Biden administration is preparing for future variants of COVID-19, White House chief of Staff Ron Klain told MSNBC in an interview that aired on January 20 as the Omicron-related wave of cases appeared to be easing in parts of the United States.

The United States could get Covid-19 under control by early 2022, with potential wider vaccine approvals coming in the weeks ahead, Dr. Anthony Fauci said one day after Pfizer won wider FDA approval for the company’s novel coronavirus shot on Aug. 23.

A U.S. health advisory panel on April 14 is set to review six reported cases of rare blood clots in women who received Johnson & Johnson’s Covid-19 vaccine one day after federal regulators paused the use of the shot to assess the issue.

The United States entered the final month of 2020 with expectations that promising vaccine candidates will soon be approved to halt the rapidly spreading coronavirus after 4.2 million new cases were reported in November.

The city of Philadelphia will ban indoor gatherings altogether and the nearby state of New Jersey will strictly limit their size as U.S. officials struggle to slow a Covid-19 surge that could overwhelm hospitals and kill thousands.