Biden’s COVID-19 Task Force Co-Chair: We Are Not Saying ‘Shut the Whole Country Down’
Former Surgeon General Vivek Murthy, the co-chair of President-elect Joe Biden’s coronavirus advisory board, is weighing in what moves the Biden coronavirus task force may take in order to combat the coronavirus…
Former Surgeon General Vivek Murthy, the co-chair of President-elect Joe Biden’s coronavirus advisory board, is weighing in what moves the Biden coronavirus task force may take in order to combat the coronavirus pandemic.
Dr. Michael Osterholm, another member of Biden’s coronavirus task force, suggested this week the idea that “we could lock down for four to six weeks” and “drive the numbers down” if the country pays workers to stay home.
Murthy was asked during Friday’s “Good Morning America” interview about Osterholm’s remarks and if it is the view of the incoming Biden administration.
However, Murthy said, “Right now, the way we should be thinking about this is more like a series of restrictions that we dial up or down depending on how bad spread is taking place in a specific region.”
He added, “We’re not in a place where we’re saying shut the whole country down. We’ve gotta be more targeted. If we don’t do that, what you’re going to find is that people will become even more fatigued, schools won’t be open to children and the economy will be hit harder.”
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Similarly, Dr. Anthony Fauci — a member of the White House coronavirus task force and the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases — said on “Good Morning America” Thursday that “we’d like to stay away from” locking down the entire country, as IJR reported.
“The best opposite strategy to locking down is to intensify the public health measures short of locking down,” Fauci said.
Biden has moved forward — despite President Donald Trump refusing to concede in the election — with bringing together a coronavirus task force.
The task force consists of 12 members, including Rick Bright, who previously filed a whistleblower complaint and alleged the Trump administration ignored his early warnings about the pandemic and that he was removed from his position in retaliation.
The president-elect said on Monday, “Dealing with the coronavirus pandemic is one of the most important battles our administration will face, and I will be informed by science and by experts.”