The Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Dr. Anthony Fauci, said on Wednesday that he doesn't see the United States returning to "some semblance of normality" until the end of 2021 or perhaps even sometime the following year. The comments were made during a webinar on the global response to the Wuhan coronavirus hosted by the University of Melbourne.
Hopefully, Dr. Anthony Fauci will be wrong about this too.
Although Dr. Fauci predicts a coronavirus vaccine may be developed in the next few months, he doesn't believe that people will be able to go about their daily lives for quite some time. Does Dr. Fauci anticipate a Joe Biden presidency and a dark future ahead?
"I think it will be easily by the end of 2021 and perhaps into the next year before we start having some semblance of normality," said Dr. Fauci.
He has previously called the Wuhan coronavirus "not a major threat," claimed face masks aren't effective against the Wuhan coronavirus, signed off on the WHO statement congratulating China on their response to the pandemic, and said face masks for the general public are not a useful tool in stopping the spread of the virus.
Dr. Fauci says his opinions have changed over time as more information has become available, so perhaps new information will change the doctor's thinking on this too.
The reason a coronavirus vaccine is expected to be here so quickly is that President Trump has fast-tracked the development of a vaccine and other therapeutics under Operation Warp Speed. The Trump administration has been working with drugmakers to fast-track the development and approval of a vaccine and awarded some $200 million to all 50 states in an effort to distribute a lifesaving vaccine as soon as one receives emergency-use authorization from the FDA.