Covid 19 coronavirus: Dr Anthony Fauci warns US of ‘surge after surge’ in infections

America’s leading infectious disease expert says the country may see a “surge” of the coronavirus in the coming weeks and does not expect current recommendations on social distancing to relax before Christmas.

“When you have the kind of inflection that we have, it doesn’t suddenly change like that,” Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, told ABC this week.

“Clearly, in the next few weeks, we are going to have the same kind of things. And maybe even two or three weeks later … we might see a rise on a rise.”

Fauci also appeared on NBC’s Meet the Press, where he made similar comments, adding that it is “not too late” for people traveling back home after Thanksgiving to help stop the spread of the virus by wearing masks. , staying away from others and avoiding large groups. from the people.

“So we know that we can do something about it, particularly now that we are entering the colder season and approaching the Christmas holidays,” he said.

The number of new Covid-19 cases reported in the United States surpassed 200,000 for the first time on Friday. The previous highest daily count was 196,000 on November 20, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.

Since January, when the first infections were reported in the US, the total number of cases in the country has exceeded 13 million. More than 265,000 people have died.

Fauci said the arrival of the vaccines offers a “light at the end of the tunnel.” Next week, the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices will meet with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to discuss the launch of the vaccine, he said.

He added that President-elect Joe Biden should focus on distributing vaccines in an “efficient and equitable manner.” Fauci also said he planned to push the new administration for a rigorous testing program.

“We have to go beyond symptomatic people and gain a better understanding of asymptomatic transmission,” he said.

Healthcare workers will likely be among the first to get the vaccine, and soon.

“It is likely, almost certainly, that we will vaccinate some of the people in the first priority before the end of December, and then as we go into January, February and March, more and more,” he said.

“So if we can stick together as a country and do these kinds of things to mitigate these surges until we get a substantial proportion of the population vaccinated, we can overcome this.”

– AP