While many Americans are hopeful things will go back to normal by summertime, one leading health expert is not so sure the nation will be out of the woods by then.
Dr. Deborah Birx, leading health expert and member of the coronavirus task force, believes social distancing guidelines will be with the nation through the summer.
“Social distancing will be with us through the summer to really ensure that we protect one another as we move through these phases,” Birx said.
Watch her comments below:
WATCH: Vice President Mike Pence said COVID-19 will be largely “behind us” by Memorial Day. #MTP #IfItsSunday
— Meet the Press (@MeetThePress) April 26, 2020
Dr. Birx: “Social distancing will be with us through the summer to really ensure that we protect one another.” pic.twitter.com/PvxDMXtMwG
NBC’s Chuck Todd asked Birx if Vice President Mike Pence’s belief “by Memorial Day weekend we will largely have the coronavirus pandemic behind us” is realistic.
She explained he was most likely basing his assertion on the models and data tracking every single outbreak of the coronavirus in the United States separately.
Birx pointed to places including Louisiana, Houston, and Detroit, as examples of how they have reached their peaks and have since come down.
She noted these examples give health experts hope when looking at Boston, Chicago, and the New York metro area.
New York has become the epicenter of the coronavirus. As of Sunday afternoon, the state is reporting over 282,000 coronavirus cases and more than 16,000 deaths.
As health experts continue to search for a treatment for the coronavirus, Birx recently defended President Donald Trump’s remarks on using disinfectant injections as a potential solution, as IJR previously reported.
“When he gets new information, he likes to talk that through out loud and really have that dialogue,” Birx said.
She added, “And so that’s what dialogue he was having. I think he just saw the information at the time, immediately before the press conference, and he was still digesting that information.”
As of Sunday afternoon, the United States has more than 941,000 confirmed coronavirus cases and over 54,000 deaths, according to reports.
