Whooping cough cases are soaring. Can infecting people help test a better vaccine? [Video]

Whooping cough is surging in the United States, with cases now five times higher than they were at the same point last year, according to preliminary data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that was reported Friday.It’s the highest number of whooping cough infections since 2014, “with no indication of slowing down,” said Dr. Susan Hariri of the CDC’s National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, who presented the data Friday at a meeting of experts who advise the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on its vaccine decisions.Video above: Urgent vaccine warning for families ahead of new school yearThis year’s spike in cases marks a return to pre-pandemic levels of this infection, which is also called pertussis.Even before the COVID-19 pandemic, whooping cough cases were trending upward in the U.S., because the vaccines that are currently used offer strong initial protection that wears off after two or …