Biden urges July Fourth celebration but COVID concerns remain

Health officials raise concerns over disparities in vaccinations, as 1,000 US counties have rates below 30 percent.

Joe Biden says Americans have reason to celebrate this Fourth of July, but the United States president has fallen short of his goal of getting 70 percent of people vaccinated against COVID-19 by the country’s independence day holiday on Sunday. Sixty-seven percent of US adults have received at least one jab, according to data from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), while 58.1 percent of those over age 18 are considered fully vaccinated. Twenty US states have partially vaccinated at least 70 percent of their adult populations by July 4, CNN reported.