Skip to main content

New story in Health from Time: ‘Of Course Not.’ Fauci Says He Wouldn’t Attend Trump’s Oklahoma Rally Amid Pandemic



Dr. Anthony Fauci, head of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease and a top U.S. infectious disease expert, said he would not attend rallies for President Donald Trump—events where large crowds are expected as the COVID-19 pandemic continues.

“No,” Fauci told The Daily Beast in a recent interview when asked if he would be appearing at Trump’s upcoming rallies in Tulsa, Okla. and Phoenix, Ariz. “I’m in a high risk category. Personally, I would not. Of course not.” Older adults and those who have certain underlying health conditions, such as diabetes or chronic lung disease, are at a higher risk of becoming severely ill from COVID-19 than others.

Fauci’s comments come as state and city officials grapple with continued questions surrounding their reopening procedures amid the spread of coronavirus. While COVID-19 infection rates have somewhat slowed down nationwide in recent months following a peak in April, some regions have seen spikes in cases, including in Oklahoma and Arizona, areas where Trump has planned to hold rallies.

Arizona, along with Texas and Florida, reported its largest one-day increase in coronavirus cases on Tuesday, with a spike of 2,392 in one day and a total of 39,097 cases. Will Humble, executive director of the state’s Public Health Association, said in a news conference on Monday that Arizona’s hospitals could see a surge in patients, leading to stretched resources and lower quality care.

While restrictions put into place to prevent people from coming into close contact with each other are easing throughout the country, Fauci said earlier in June that gathering in large groups is still “risky.” In a radio interview with NPR’s 1A on Tuesday, Fauci said cases in some states were likely rising because people are “not really adhering to the structured type of guidelines that belong to the phase that they’re in.”

A second wave of the coronavirus was “not inevitable,” he said as long as people “do what we need to do to prevent it from happening.”

Fauci spoke just days before Trump is expected to greet a large crowd in Tulsa in an indoor arena that can fit about 20,000 people during a Saturday rally. Health officials in the city have warned that the rally could make the spread of coronavirus worse. Those who want to attend the rally in Tulsa are required to agree that they will not sue the Trump Campaign if they contract the virus at the event; during a press briefing on Wednesday, White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany said those in attendance would be provided with masks, but not required to wear them.

During an interview Wednesday morning, Oklahoma Sen. James Lankford said he did not believe people “with underlying health conditions” should attend the rally.

Fauci told NPR he hasn’t spoken with Trump in about two weeks and added, in reference to a question about the nationwide protests against racism and police brutality, that people should still continue to avoid crowds and wear masks.

“That clearly has a positive effect, so when you pull away from that and you still have viral dynamics in your community, that’s not a good idea,” he said. “So rather than blame one or the other, just listen to what I’m saying: It’s risky when you do that, so please avoid doing that.”

Popular posts from this blog

New story in Health from Time: 3 More People Diagnosed With Coronavirus in Northern California

Three more people in Northern California have been diagnosed with the coronavirus known as 2019-nCoV, health officials in the area said Sunday, doubling the number of cases in the state and bringing the total across the country to 11 . The patients, whose symptoms are not yet serious enough to warrant hospitalization, are being kept in their homes, where they are being closely monitored, the San Francisco Chronicle reports . Two of the patients are a husband and wife from San Benito County. The husband fell ill after he returned home from Wuhan, China, where the outbreak began. It is believed he transferred the virus to his wife, who had not been to China. The other patient became sick while visiting family in Santa Clara County. She also previously visited Wuhan. Since arriving in the United States on Jan. 23, she has only left her home twice to seek out medical assistance. Officials from both counties said they are working to identify anyone who may have come into cont...

New video by blogilates on YouTube

Day 8 - 14 | Blogilates 2020 Challenge You guys are CRUSHING the #2020Challenge so far! Idk about you but my abs are soooooore! This week, we're doing 20 reps of abs every day + 20 reps of another new exercise every day! If you need a little extra motivation, text my number (510-692-4556) and tell me all about it so we can come up with a solution together! This link also works: https://ift.tt/2Qjqw7G This week's moves are: Jan. 8th (starts 0:48) - 20 butterfly bridges + 20 criss cross (butt + abs) Jan. 9th (starts 2:43) - 20 oil riggers + 20 rollovers (arms + abs) Jan. 10th (starts 8:29) - 20 lunges + 20 leg outs (legs + abs) Jan. 11th (starts 11:03) - 20 walnut crushers + 20 single leg drops (back + abs) Jan. 12th (starts 13:41) - 20 sprinters + 20 crunches (obliques + abs) Jan. 13th (starts 16:27) - 20 squat jumps + 20 russian twists (cardio + abs) Jan. 14th (starts 18:57) - 20 plank jacks + 20 butt ups (total body + abs) Here is where I get all of my music! Epidemic Sound: ...

New story in Health from Time: Coronavirus Cases Outside China Are Accelerating Rapidly. Here’s What to Know

A surge in deadly coronavirus cases outside China is raising concerns that the outbreak has reached a new stage and could continue its global spread to even more vulnerable countries. In the central Chinese province of Hubei, where the virus is believed to have originated, the number of cases appears to be stabilizing, according to government figures. But the number of people infected elsewhere in the world is rising quickly, with clusters in South Korea , Italy, Iran and a cruise ship docked in Japan. As of Monday, more than 2,200 cases of the virus, officially called COVID-19, have been reported outside of mainland China, where the overwhelming majority of the 79,000 cases have been located since officials first discovered the disease in December. The number of deaths outside China has also increased to 166, including 50 in Iran and four in Italy. In a news conference Monday, World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the WHO...