Nurse Karen Hayes cleans her hands with sanitizer after tending to a patient who has covid-19 in the acute care covid unit at Harborview Medical Center on May 7, 2020 in Seattle, Washington. (AFP photo)

The United States will face "really serious" consequences if the nation reopens too quickly, warns leading US infectious diseases expert Anthony Fauci.

The director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases made the comments in a highly anticipated hearing on Tuesday.

"My concern is that if some areas, city, states or what have you, jump over those various checkpoints and prematurely open up without having the capability of being able to respond effectively and efficiently, my concern is that we will start to see little spikes that might turn into outbreaks," Fauci said. "The consequences could be really serious."

Fauci, who was self-isolating after being in contact with a confirmed covid-19 case at the White House, gave the virtual testimony from his Washington home.

"Even under the best of circumstances, when you pull back on mitigation, you will see some cases appear. It�s the ability and the capability of responding to those cases with good identification, isolation and contact tracing will determine whether you can continue to go forward, as you try to reopen America."

Concerned about the economic repercussions of the coronavirus pandemic, US President Donald Trump has been pressuring states to reopen.

"The great people of Pennsylvania want their freedom now, and they are fully aware of what that entails," Trump tweeted on Monday. "The Democrats are moving slowly, all over the USA, for political purposes. They would wait until November 3rd if it were up to them."

Nearly 81,000 lives have so far been lost in the US with 1.3 million coronavirus cases recorded.

"There is a real risk that you will trigger an outbreak," Fauci said of ignoring those guidelines. "You might not be able to control it, which in fact, paradoxically, will set you back, not only leading to some suffering and death [that] could be avoided, but could even set you back on the road to try to get economic recovery."

SOURCE: PRESS TV

LINK: https://www.ansarpress.com/english/17418

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