The nation’s leading infectious diseases expert, Anthony Fauci, voiced his frustrations about the spread of misinformation, saying, “Get rid of these ridiculous conspiracy theories.”
His comments came on Wednesday during an editorial board meeting with USA Today and focused on the false notion perpetuated by some that COVID-19 is no worse than the flu.
Fauci described how COVID-19 differs from the regular influenza, saying it is wrong to compare the two.
“When you ask me about frustration, which borders on pain, it’s that either people don’t want to look at the data or they look at the data and they say it’s fake. No, it isn’t fake. … This is a global issue,” said Fauci.
Fauci, the head of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, noted that the U.S. has now seen 250,000 deaths from COVID-19. The nation has recorded more than 11 million cases.
“I tell the people who deny or think that this is nothing, do you mean that every single country in Europe is doing the same thing, is making things up? They’re not. I mean, it’s so obvious,” Fauci added.
Fauci has expressed hope about coming vaccines, saying Thursday that “the cavalry is coming.”
But the nation is in the midst of a serious spike in COVID-19 cases that are likely to greatly add to the country’s death total before vaccines are widely available.