CDC Director Rochelle Walensky talks to Insider about missing vaccination goals

Hello,

Welcome to Insider Healthcare. I'm Lydia Ramsey Pflanzer, and today in healthcare news:

• Interview: CDC Director Rochelle Walensky on the US missing its goal to get 70% of the country vaccinated by July 4;
• Take a look at the presentation Spora Health used to raise $3 million;
• Why experts think vaccine mandates could keep events from getting called off.

If you're new to this newsletter, sign up here. Comments, tips? Email me at lramsey@insider.com or tweet @lydiaramsey125. Let's get to it...

America is missing vaccination goals, and Delta is raging, but it's not because 'anything particularly went wrong,' CDC Director Rochelle Walensky says

• President Joe Biden wanted 70% of eligible Americans vaccinated by July 4.
• It didn't happen.
• CDC Director Rochelle Walensky blamed division and poor funding.

Read the rest of the interview with Insider Editor in Chief Nicholas Carlson>>

See the pitch deck that Spora Health used to convince investors to bet $3 million on a new approach to telehealth

• Telehealth startup Spora Health was founded in 2019 to provide better care to Black Americans.
• It hopes to do this by training doctors to be culturally competent, CEO Dan Miller told Insider.

See the presentation that Spora used to raise $3 million in a seed round>>

People are bracing for a wave of event cancellations due to the Delta variant. Vaccine mandates could keep organizers from calling everything off.

• Some organizers are cancelling large events, like the New York Auto Show, as COVID-19 cases surge.
• Some other venues are requiring proof of vaccination upon entry.
• Public health experts said vaccine-only events are safer and provide an incentive to get shots.

Read the full analysis here>>

More stories we're reading:

• 'I Am Legend' screenwriter tells anti-vaxxers the movie is 'not real' to shut down a bizarre meme falsely saying the zombies in the film were sickened by vaccines (Insider)
• One chart details COVID-19 vaccine sales in the US and abroad (Axios)
• Climate scientists want you to know it's not too late (Insider)
• Orthopedic surgeons are making millions on investments in private medical device companies (Kaiser Health News)

- Lydia