Pandemic-weary Americans entered the holiday season under strong pressure from political leaders and health officials to stay home, avoid gatherings and curtail Christmas shopping as they wait for promised Covid-19 vaccines.

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention hinted that the first of those medications could be close to government approval, as it posted notice of an emergency meeting for Tuesday to vote on the “allocation of initial supplies of Covid-19 vaccine.”

Covid-19 infections and hospitalisations have spiraled in recent weeks, prompting increasingly aggressive clamp-downs in many US states, according to Reuters.

One day after the nations marked a diminished Thanksgiving, malls and retailers imposing strict Covid-19 rules saw fewer Americans in stores for the traditional Black Friday start of the holiday shopping season.