‘The economy cannot stay open’: Omicron’s effects ricochet across US

Biden has vowed to keep businesses and schools open but some experts wonder if that's possible given nature of Covid variant

Schools going virtual, airlines canceling flights, pharmacies and testing centers closing temporarily, shelves emptying in grocery stores because of transportation delays, blood donations dropping to crisis levels for the first time ever and the country's hospitals are becoming stretched. This is the US in the grip of the Omicron variant.

Omicron may cause milder symptoms in some people, but its effects are ricocheting throughout America and creating some of the greatest challenges of the Covid-19 pandemic.