Dr. Anthony Fauci — the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID)— is offering a candid glimpse at the personal decisions he has made when it comes to staying safe amid the coronavirus pandemic.
During an interview with MarketWatch published on Friday, Fauci admitted that he is not eating in restaurants or taking flights due to the coronavirus.
Fauci also offered a word of advice to those who are patronizing restaurants as he insisted indoor dining is far more dangerous than eating outdoors.
“Indoors is much worse than outdoors,” Fauci said. “If you’re going to go to a restaurant, try as best as you can to have outdoor seating that is properly spaced between the tables. restaurants.”
While the top infectious disease expert acknowledged that he is part of the high-risk category due to his age, he also attributed his decision to the “amount of infection” the United States is currently battling.
“Well, the answer is ‘No’ for the following reason: I am in a risk category. I don’t like to admit it, but I’m 79 years old,” Fauci said, adding, “Right now, I’m very sequestered. I’m on a coronavirus task force. I go to the White House almost every day.”
Fauci went on to discuss how he typically spends his day and why he does not “fancy” seeing himself getting infected with the virus.
“I spend half a day in my office trying to develop a vaccine and drugs for COVID-19, and that’s really what I need to do,” Fauci said. “I don’t fancy seeing myself getting infected, which is a risk when you’re getting on a plane, particularly with the amount of infection that’s going on right now.”
Fauci’s remarks come amid ongoing concerns about the coronavirus as some state and local officials scaling back or pausing on reopening to slow the spread of the virus. Despite the latest efforts to mitigate the spread, the United States has reported more than 4.1 million coronavirus cases.