Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute for Allergic Infectious Diseases, attended a hearing of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pension Commission, and attended a hearing on Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) and Capitol Hill. Investigate the federal government’s response to the species. January 11, 2022, in Washington, DC, USA.
Greg Nash | Reuters
Dr. Anthony Fauci, the leader of the US government’s Covid pandemic response activity, tested positive for the coronavirus.
Fauci, who was fully vaccinated and boosted twice against Covid, is experiencing mild symptoms, according to a statement Wednesday from the National Institute of Infectious Diseases, which he leads.
“Dr. Fauci will continue to work in isolation from his home,” the statement said. “He hasn’t been in close contact with the president lately. [Joe] Biden or other high-ranking government official. “
In addition to being the director of NIAID, a division of the National Institutes of Health, 81-year-old Fauci is also Biden’s chief medical advisor.
CNBC analysis of data compiled by Johns Hopkins University shows that Covid infections caused by highly contagious Omicron mutants have surged again in the United States after falling below 30,000 a day in March and April. .. According to the data, the average number of new infections per day has been stable at over 100,000 since the end of May.
In a statement, NIAID said Fauci would follow the Covid-19 guidelines issued by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, “get medical advice from your doctor and return to NIH if your test results are negative.” ..
Infectious disease experts have been the public face of Covid’s response since the full-scale pandemic began in the United States in March 2020.
Promoting coronavirus mitigation efforts, including social distance, wearing masks, and vaccination when they became available, made him a hero for many. But he also elicited criticism from others who believed that the official reaction to Covid was too burdensome.
Fauci often rubbed his role under then-President Donald Trump. Donald Trump, when Covid first occurred in China, greatly downplayed Covid’s risk and sometimes criticized Fauci.
Fauci told CNN last month If Trump wins his second term as president in 2024, he will not continue his role as Chief Medical Advisor to the White House.
“If you look at the history of what the reaction was during that time [Trump] It can be said that the administration was not optimal at best. “
“And I think history is the only one talking about it.”
June 1 Fauci told Fox News He hopes to resign from his government leadership role by the time his next presidential term begins in January 2025.
“Well, I’m not going to be involved in politics about who goes to the White House,” Forch said in an interview when he was asked if he would serve under Trump again.
“By that time, no matter who the president is, I don’t think I’m around,” he said.
About 86 million Americans have been infected with Covid in the last 18 months. According to the report, more than one million people have died from the virus in the United States. Johns Hopkins University of Medicine Coronavirus Resource Center.