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As COVID-19 cases increase again in nearly all states, public health officials say the US needs to get ahead of the contagious Delta variant by vaccinating more people, according to CNN.

Average vaccination rates continue to drop, yet case rates are going up by at least 10% in 47 states. In 35 states, cases increased 50% during the past week.

After reaching a low of 11,000 daily cases last month, US cases have doubled during the past 2 weeks, climbing to an average of about 25,000 new infections per day.

“We’re losing time here,” Francis Collins, MD, director of the National Institutes of Health, told CNN on Wednesday.

About 65% of Americans ages 12 years and older have received at least one vaccine dose, according to the latest CDC tally updated on Wednesday. More than 56% are fully vaccinated.

Those who are vaccinated are largely protected from the coronavirus, including the Delta variant, he said. The key is getting vaccines to those who haven’t yet received a shot.

“The Delta variant is spreading, people are dying,” Collins said. “We can’t actually just wait for things to get more rational.”