CDC Criticized, Mocked from All Sides after Series of Muddled Messages Baffles Americans Amid Record Surge in COVID Cases

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has been criticized and mocked from all sides after a series of muddled messages has baffled Americans amid a record surge in COVID-19 cases and the spread of the omicron variant.

“Honestly, right now the CDC’s slogan should just be, ‘We have no idea,’” Jimmy Fallon joked on Tuesday night during his “Tonight Show” monologue. “Seriously, at this point, you’re better off waiting a month to hear what the groundhog has to say.”

The CDC updated its guidance around isolation again on Tuesday, declining to add a clear testing recommendation while saying that people can take a test if they have “access” and “want to.” The new guidelines came as millions of Americans wait in hours-long lines to get tested during a record-breaking surge in cases.