Dr Anthony Fauci warns Covid cases could spike if Thanksgiving gatherings are not canceled

Dr Anthony Fauci has warned Thanksgiving could cause a spike in coronavirus cases as he urged caution to families across the US.

The nation’s leading infectious disease expert said he was worried people will be meeting up from separate homes, sometimes from out of town, and gathering inside.

Fauci, 79, said families should try to limit the number of people attending Thanksgiving and try to keep it to their own household.

Dr Anthony Fauci has warned Thanksgiving could cause a spike in coronavirus cases as he urged caution to families across the US

Dr Anthony Fauci has warned Thanksgiving could cause a spike in coronavirus cases as he urged caution to families across the US

He told CBS Evening News: ‘I think given the fluid and dynamic nature of what’s going on right now in the spread and the uptick of infections, I think people should be very careful and prudent about social gatherings, particularly when members of the family might be at a risk because of their age or their underlying condition.

‘Namely, you may have to bite the bullet and sacrifice that social gathering unless you’re pretty certain that the people that you’re dealing with are not infected.’

The presidential advisor discussed the differences between household gatherings and ones where family members travel to meet up with each other.

There are fears that different households are meeting up together, causing the virus to spread. Pictured: people at a restaurant in New York City

There are fears that different households are meeting up together, causing the virus to spread. Pictured: people at a restaurant in New York City 

He said he was not worried about infecting his wife because they are not gathering with others outside the home, but his children will not be joining them for Thanksgiving.  

He said. ‘I would love to have it with my children, but my children are in three separate states throughout the country, and in order for them to get here, they would all have to go to an airport, get on a plane, travel with public transportation.’

His warnings come after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) made similar warnings about the upcoming holiday on Wednesday.

On average, infections have spiked to more than 49,000 new infections every day. That's a 13 per cent increase from the week prior, according to Johns Hopkins University

On average, infections have spiked to more than 49,000 new infections every day. That’s a 13 per cent increase from the week prior, according to Johns Hopkins University

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Director Dr Robert Redfield (pictured) has warned that families spending time together for the Thanksgiving holiday could cause COVID cases to soar as 'small household gatherings' are blamed for a spike in infection rates

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Director Dr Robert Redfield (pictured) has warned that families spending time together for the Thanksgiving holiday could cause COVID cases to soar as ‘small household gatherings’ are blamed for a spike in infection rates

Director Dr Robert Redfield said families spending time together for could cause COVID cases to soar with ‘small household gatherings’ already being blamed for a spike in infection rates.   

‘In the public square, we’re seeing a higher degree of vigilance and mitigation steps in many jurisdictions,’ Redfield said during a call with state governors on Tuesday, according to CNN.

‘But what we’re seeing as the increasing threat right now is actually acquisition of infection through small household gatherings,’ Redfield said.   

‘Particularly with Thanksgiving coming up, we think it’s really important to stress the vigilance of these continued mitigation steps in the household setting.’

There are more than 7.8 million cases of the virus in the US and more than 216,000 people have died since the pandemic spread in mid-March

There are more than 7.8 million cases of the virus in the US and more than 216,000 people have died since the pandemic spread in mid-March

On average, infections have spiked to more than 49,000 new cases every day. That’s a 13 per cent increase from the week prior, according to Johns Hopkins University. 

There are more than 7.8 million cases of the virus in the US and more than 216,000 people have died since the pandemic spread in mid-March.  

Redfield’s remarks come just days after White House coronavirus response task force coordinator Dr Deborah Birx warned that the Northeast is experiencing ‘troubling signs’ of a ‘very different’ style of coronavirus spread as temperatures drop in the region.

Birx said Thursday that fall’s cooler weather in the region has led to coronavirus spreading faster within small gatherings of families and social groups, than in schools and workplaces where people are following precautions.

‘What we’re seeing in the community is much more spread occurring in households and in social occasions, small gatherings where people have come inside, taken off their mask to eat or drink or socialize with one another,’ Birx said Thursday at a roundtable discussion at the University of Connecticut in Hartford, Connecticut.

It’s a similar type of spread pattern that was seen in Southern states over the summer, when people flocked to air-conditioned, indoor areas to escape heat and humidity, she said, according to ABC News. 

source: dailymail.co.uk