Dr. Anthony Fauci said it’s likely there will be a second coronavirus outbreak in the U.S. this coming fall.
The director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases answered a few questions during the White House Coronavirus Task Force briefing on Monday, according to KTLA sister station WJW. The briefing came a day after President Donald Trump extended federal social distancing guidelines through April.
Fauci said he anticipates coronavirus will be cyclical and return in the fall because of its degree of transmissibility.
However, the second outbreak will be different compared to when the virus was first detected in the U.S., according to Fauci, because the country will have a better ability to test and contact trace, and there are clinical trials for therapeutic intervention, as well as a vaccine is on track.
“What we’re going through now is more than just lessons learned, it’s going to be things we have available to us that we didn’t have before,” he said.
When asked about the possibility of a second outbreak, Trump said, “I hope it doesn’t happen, but we’re certainly prepared.”
