CDC says "the war has changed" in internal document about COVID-19 vaccines and delta variant

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says "the war has changed" against COVID-19 and that the agency should acknowledge that in communications, according to an internal presentation by the agency.

Data in the document, which was first obtained by The Washington Post, underscores the danger posed by the highly-contagious delta variant of the virus that was first spotted in India. In the presentation, dated July 29, the agency does not estimate that vaccinated Americans are at a significantly greater risk of so-called "breakthrough" infections. In fact, it cites recent unpublished data from several of the CDC's ongoing cohort studies that have scrutinized large groups of Americans suggesting vaccine effectiveness remains high months after their second shot, suggesting the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines remain 65-75% effective even against asymptomatic infection.