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Charley Lanyon

Dr Anthony Fauci, the United States’ leading infectious disease expert, warned of “really serious” consequences if the nation pushed to reopen too soon, while offering cautious optimism on treatment and vaccine development.
In testimony to the Senate Health, Labour and Pensions Committee, Fauci reminded senators repeatedly that the virus will never disappear, that new cases are inevitable even with improved testing and treatment, and that it is paramount that states show they can handle future outbreaks with comprehensive tracing systems, robust testing, and sufficient medical capacity.
“There is no doubt, even under the best of circumstances, when you pull back on mitigation you will see some cases appear,” Fauci said.
Without proper preparations, Fauci said he feared that “we will start to see little spikes that might turn into outbreaks,” and that “the consequences could be really serious”.


His comments throughout the hearing reiterated points he made in the email he sent to The New York Times on Monday in which he wrote: “If we skip over the checkpoints in the guidelines to: ‘Open America Again,’ then we risk the danger of multiple outbreaks throughout the country. This will not only result in needless suffering and death, but would actually set us back on our quest to return to normal.”
Fauci gave his testimony from home – where he is under self-quarantine – to a mostly empty meeting room. Many senators present wore masks, while others conferenced in from their homes.
Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and a key member of the White House coronavirus task force, was joined by the three senior health officials: Food and Drug Administration commissioner Dr Stephen Hahn, Centres for Disease Control and Prevention director Dr Robert Redfield and the Assistant Secretary for Health Admiral Brett Giroir.
Coronavirus: Dr Fauci quarantining along with two other task force members
In his opening remarks, Redfield – also at home in self-quarantine – called upon the nation to seize this opportunity to strengthen the nation’s health care system.
“We need to rebuild our nation’s public health infrastructure,” he said. “Now’s the time to put it in place for the generations to come, not only for the public health system that our nation needs, but for the public health system our nation deserves.”
Fauci used his testimony to caution states against moving too quickly, repeatedly called upon leaders to rely on hard data and to follow guidelines on reopening put out by the federal government. His words came as many states moved forward with reopening even as only 33 states have met even the most basic benchmark for reopening – a 14-day downward trajectory in new cases and infection rates – according to an Associated Press analysis.
When asked if the virus would effectively go away on its own, a scenario occasionally put forth by the White House, Fauci demurred. “That is just not going to happen,” he said.
And Fauci did not share the level of optimism of Trump, who said on Monday afternoon that “we have met the moment and we have prevailed”.


Under questioning by Democratic Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren, Fauci struck a different tone.
“If you think we have it completely under control, we don’t,” he said. “I think we are going in the right direction, but the right direction does not mean we have, by any means, total control of this outbreak.”
Still, anyone hoping for a partisan sound bite was disappointed.
When pressed by Republican Utah Senator Mitt Romney – who has emerged as a rare critic of the Trump administration within the Republican Party – whether it would be fair to say that either former president Barack Obama or Trump were responsible for the United States not having a vaccine, the doctor did not mince words: “Certainly, neither President Obama nor President Trump are responsible for not having a vaccine.”
Fauci dismisses coronavirus lab origin claims as ‘circular argument’
And Fauci tempered his serious warnings with good news, including his confidence the country would ramp up testing to where it was needed and that a vaccine will be developed. Fauci touted the speed of the nation’s response especially in terms of vaccines, saying that multiple vaccines were in development and testing at the same time, and that we should have a good idea of whether they work by late fall or early winter.
Asked by Romney whether an effective vaccine within a year or two was a “long shot”, Fauci said: “Definitely not.”


“It is more likely than not, that we will, because … the overwhelming majority of people recover from this virus,” he explained. “The very fact that the body is capable of spontaneously clearing the virus tells me that at least from a conceptual standpoint, we can stimulate the body with a vaccine that would induce a similar response.”
Tuesday’s testimony is likely the only time that Fauci will face questions from Democratic lawmakers.
President Trump has mostly blocked members of the coronavirus task force from testifying to Congress, especially the Democrat-controlled House, calling the House a “set-up” and “a bunch of Trump haters.”
Additional reporting by Robert Delaney
 


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Coronavirus pandemic

Top disease expert Dr Anthony Fauci warns of ‘really serious’ consequences if US reopens too soon

Senators listen as Dr Anthony Fauci speaks remotely during a virtual Senate committee hearing on Tuesday. Photo: AP

Dr Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, is seen in a frame grab from a video feed as he testifies remotely from his home during a Senate committee hearing in Washington on Tuesday. Photo: US Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labour, and Pensions Committee via Reuters

Coronavirus: as Covid-19 cases in some US states swell, a model revises estimates upwards

A shopper at the Flora Grubb Gardens in San Francisco on Saturday, after California loosened its stay-at-home orders, allowing some retailers to reopen. Many states are easing restrictions, which is causing coronavirus projections across the US to spike. Photo: AP

FILE - In this Tuesday, May 5, 2020, file photo, Gov. Gavin Newsom speaks in Sacramento, Calif. Newsom formally endorsed Joe Biden for president on Friday, praising the former vice president for his "deep compassion and empathy" during a virtual high-dollar fundraiser in partnership with the Democratic National Committee. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli, Pool, File)

(FILES) In this file photo director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases Anthony Fauci listens during the daily briefing on the novel coronavirus, COVID-19, in the Brady Briefing Room at the White House on April 6, 2020, in Washington, DC. - The NFL's chances of playing out its planned 256-game schedule will depend upon containing the conronavirus outbreak and testing results, according to COVID-19 pandemic expert Dr. Anthony Fauci. Fauci, a leader among the White House Coronavirus Task Force advising the US government on the deadly virus, told NBC Sports that very little is certain about the NFL's hopes to have a season and a Super Bowl in February at Tampa, Florida, as planned. (Photo by MANDEL NGAN / AFP)

Coronavirus: Tesla’s Elon Musk ‘ready for arrest’ as he reopens California factory, defying authorities

Tesla and SpaceX boss Elon Musk speaks at a news conference at the Kennedy Space Centre in Cape Canaveral, Florida, in January. Photo: Reuters

FILE - In this May 14, 2015, file photo, Tesla employees work on a Model S cars in the Tesla factory in Fremont, Calif. Tesla CEO Elon Musk is threatening to pull the company's factory and headquarters out of California in a spat with local officials over reopening an electric vehicle plant. On Twitter Saturday afternoon, May 9, 2020, Musk threatened to sue over health department coronavirus restrictions that have stopped Tesla from restarting production at its factory in Fremont south of San Francisco. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu, File)

FILE - In this April 14, 2020, file photo, California Gov. Gavin Newsom gestures during a news conference at the Governor's Office of Emergency Services in Rancho Cordova, Calif. Facing an array of unknowns from the coronavirus crisis, California will send every voter a mail-in ballot for the November presidential election, Newsom announced Friday, May 8. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli, Pool, File)

Europe fears coronavirus second wave

People stand on signs to respect social distancing on a tram platform in Nice, France. Photo: Reuters

A man drinks a beer at an outdoor seating section of a pub, as the Czech government lifted more restrictions allowing restaurants with outdoor areas to re-open amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, in Prague, Czech Republic, May 11, 2020. REUTERS/David W Cerny TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY

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Key member of Trump’s Covid-19 task force testifies to Senate panel via video conference
He offers cautious optimism on treatment and vaccine development



Fauci testified to Senate panel via video conference; while he warned about ‘serious’ consequences of reopening the nation too soon, he also offered cautious optimism on vaccine development.


Top disease expert Dr Anthony Fauci warns of ‘really serious’ consequences if US reopens too soon

Key member of Trump’s Covid-19 task force testifies to Senate panel via video conference He offers cautious optimism on treatment and vaccine development

Key member of Trump’s Covid-19 task force testifies to Senate panel via video conference

He offers cautious optimism on treatment and vaccine development