Imposing coronavirus lockdowns for too long could cause “irreparable damage,” said the White House’s top doctor Anthony Fauci Friday.
Fauci believes many parts of the country are ready for “cautious” and “prudent” reopenings, though he warned that guidelines for social distancing and mask-wearing must still be adhered to, he said during an appearance on CNBC Friday.
“We can’t stay locked down for such a substantial period of your time that you simply might do irreparable damage and have unintended consequences, including consequences for health,” he said.
The National Institutes for Health official has taken heat from Republican lawmakers for appearing to lobby against President Trump’s involves reopening.
Fauci on Friday said that although state lockdowns are effective as long as cases are surging, the country has hit some extent where some regions could begin reopening.
“We are hooked in to reopening and that i think we will roll in the hay during a pace that might be reasonable and would get us back as a society from a morale standpoint also because the economy,” he said.
“I don’t want people to think that any folks feel that staying locked down for a protracted period of your time is that the thanks to go.”
Fauci said he was still worried about localities reopening goodbye as cases still rise; he urged such areas to limit crowds.
“If states and cities and counties are getting to [open] regardless of what, i might recommend that they take very specific precautions in doing that,” he said. “You can still proceed to open, goodbye as you are doing those fundamental baseline things.
“But generally , i feel most of the country is doing it during a prudent way,” he went on.
“There are obviously some situations where people could be jumping over that. I just say proceed with caution if you’re getting to do this .”
Fauci during his Congressional testimony last week predicted greater “suffering and death” from the coronavirus if certain states reopen businesses too hastily.
Health experts have dismissed the thought of COVID-19 herd immunity, but the timeline for a vaccine rollout remains uncertain.
Fauci has remained upbeat — during an interview with NPR earlier Friday he said it’s “conceivable” that a vaccine could come by the top of the year.
