- Click to share on Facebook (Opens in a new window)
- Click to share on Twitter (Opens in a new window)
- Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in a new window)
- Click to email a friend (Opens in a new window)
A beer is named in honor of Dr. Fauci in the USA. 2:19
(CNN) - Dr. Anthony Fauci, a key member of the White House coronavirus task force, warned senators on Tuesday that states and cities face serious consequences if they open too quickly, urging states to do not reopen until they know they have the capacity to handle an inevitable increase in cases once the containment orders are relaxed.
In a high-profile hearing where witnesses and many lawmakers joined via video conference, Fauci also told a Senate committee on Tuesday that it is a far-flung option for schools to wait for a vaccine or widely available treatment for covid-19 when Students return to campus in the fall, although they expressed optimism that a vaccine would be developed in the next year or two.
Fauci, who heads the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, was moderate but candid in his testimony about efforts to respond to the coronavirus outbreak and confinement orders Tuesday at the first Senate hearing on the coronavirus outbreak since March. He told the Senate panel that he did not have a "confrontational relationship" with President Donald Trump, but Fauci's testimony contrasts with Trump's growing drive in recent days for states to reopen business.
"I am concerned that if some areas, cities, states, or whatever, jump over those various checkpoints and open prematurely, without having the ability to respond effectively and efficiently, my concern is that we will start to see little spikes that they could become outbreaks, ”Fauci said in testimony before the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Commission.
"There is a real risk that you will trigger an outbreak that you may not be able to control, which in fact, paradoxically, will slow you down, not only causing some suffering and death that could be prevented, but could even slow you down the road to treat to obtain the economic recovery ”, added Fauci later.
Tuesday's hearing, titled "Covid-19: Back to Work and School Safely," was a strange reminder of the challenges posed by the coronavirus and the efforts Congress has made to try to operate with any appearance of normality. . All four witnesses and committee leaders appeared remotely. Three of the witnesses and the president, Senator Lamar Alexander of Tennessee, were not present because they were isolated or quarantined to some extent after contact with people who tested positive for coronavirus.
Alexander was in the audience via video conference at his cabin in Maryville, Tennessee. His dog, Rufus, could be heard barking in the background as the President spoke and slept in front of the camera for much of the audience. Inside the mostly empty courtroom, which was closed to the public, some of the attending senators wore masks, while others were not sitting in their socially remote seats under the normal listening platform.
Fauci and other public health experts, including the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Robert Redfield, testified Tuesday in what may be one of the only public hearings with members of the Coronavirus Task Force on the White House.
The hearing came as states across the country begin to take steps to reverse business closings and confinement orders established two months ago to try to reduce the rate of coronavirus infection. Senators' testimony and questions often illustrate the division within the country between Republicans and Democrats about how the administration has handled the crisis and the best way forward amid warnings that positive cases could emerge again if the restrictions were to be lifted. shrink too fast.
Democrats pressured Fauci and officials about the disconnect between the president's comments and the recommendations of public health experts.
"The fact is, President Trump has focused more on fighting the truth than fighting this virus, and Americans have sadly paid the price," said Washington Sen. Patty Murray, the top Democrat on the commission.
Anthony Fauci