The top infectious disease specialist in the United States said Thursday that there will surely be new cases of coronavirus as states begin to ease restrictions to curb the spread of COVID-19. States must proceed with caution in allowing the reopening of businesses and allowing greater freedom of movement, said Dr. Anthony Fauci.
“There will be small outbreaks … of that there is no doubt,” Fauci said on an NBC morning show. “With mitigation there will be more cases and what we need to do is make sure that (the states) have the ability to identify, isolate and trace individual contacts.”
Fauci urged states that do not have that capacity to proceed very slowly. “You can’t go forward and jump into a situation where you are tempted to rebound. That’s what worries me,” he said.
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On the eve, President Donald Trump said that the federal government will not extend the rules of social distancing beyond Thursday. His son-in-law and adviser Jared Kushner predicted that the country will be “fully active again” by July, despite the fact that health specialists consider it highly unlikely.
Trump was scheduled to meet Thursday with New Jersey Democratic Governor Phil Murphy as he focused on the reopening process that has begun in many places.
Murphy told Fox News before traveling to Washington that his intention was to speak to Trump about the ability of clinical trials and obtaining federal funds for his state, one of the worst hit by the pandemic.
“We need help for the here and now,” said the governor. “Teachers, police, lifeguards, the first line of fire. Resources are running out, we help people who have lost their jobs due to illness, the closure of small businesses, and so on. That is why we need a large dose of federal funds “
Trump is trying to move into a new stage of the virus response as new cases and the rate of hospitalizations drop in many states. The death toll from the coronavirus has already exceeded that of US casualties in the Vietnam War.
