Dr Anthony Fauci: “When I say protect, I mean right now, not wait until things get worse”

As Donald Trump plays golf, top US health officials say regional lockdowns may be necessary in the attempt to limit the spread of Coronavirus.

Dr. Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, spoke on Sunday about lockdowns and limits on travel by the elderly and those with underlying health conditions.

“I don’t think it would be as draconian as ‘nobody in and nobody out’,” Fauci told Fox TV. “But there’ll be, if we continue to get cases like this, particularly at the community level, there will be what we call mitigation.”

The official US toll was raised to 539 cases across 34 states and the District of Columbia. There have been 22 deaths, including one in Washington State, where 17 people have passed away.

Washington State, New York, California, Maryland, and Oregon have declared emergencies.

After Fauci’s remarks, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued guidance against travel on cruise ships.

Officials are preparing to evacuate 3,533 people from the Grand Princess off the California coast, despite the resistance of Donald Trump. Nineteen crew members and two passengers have tested positive for the virus.

The ship will dock at the Port of Oakland as soon as Monday. More than 2,400 passengers will undergo health screenings, and about 1,000 California residents will be transferred to a federal facility for testing.

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TrumpWatch, Day 1,143: Officials — Trump’s Mismanagement Fuels Coronavirus Crisis

This weekend Italian officials announced a lockdown of a quarter of the country, affecting 16 million people, after the death toll surged to 366.

Trump Putts While Others Prepare

Fauci’s TV appearances were a marked shift in urgency from remarks the previous week by Vice President Mike Pence and Health Secretary Alex Azar. The doctor told NBC News:

If you get infected, the risk of getting into trouble is considerable, so it’s our responsibility to protect the vulnerable.

When I say protect, I mean right now, not wait until things get worse. [I] say “no large crowds, no long trips, and above all, don’t get on a cruise ship”.

Fauci noted many of new cases showed signs of “community spread”, with no trace back to a single source.

But the Administration continued to fumble, after weeks of mismanagement and false or misleading statements by Trump.

Dr Ben Carson, the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, said on ABC News, “If you are not healthy, think very seriously about attending places where there are crowds.”

However, he then floundered over the arrangements for the evacuation of the Grand Princess cruise ship.

And Trump, who proclaimed on February 26 that the virus would soon be “under control”, appeared oblivious to the latest developments. He played golf in Florida with members of the Washington Nationals baseball team. He railed on Twitter about detailed media reports of the confusion and mis-steps in the Administration’s response to the outbreak.

Trump — and his Social Media Director Dan Scavino — also unwittingly circulated a meme portraying Trump as a Nero fiddling while the US faces the crisis.

Meanwhile, both Sen. Ted Cruz and Rep. Paul Gosar said they were going into a 14-day self-quarantine after coming into contact with a carrier of Coronavirus.

Cruz and Gosar each interacted with an attendee at the Conservative Political Action Conference in Maryland last week.

The man also shook the hand of CPAC chair Matt Schlapp, who later introduced — and shook hands with — Trump.