Dr. Fauci Says He Would 'Not Be Surprised' If U.S. Rises to 100,000 New Coronavirus Cases Per Day

Dr. Anthony Fauci warns that the United States is in danger of reaching as many as 100,000 new coronavirus cases per day.

Dr. Anthony Fauci testifies before HELP Committee hearing.
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Image via Getty/KEVIN DIETSCH/AFP

Dr. Anthony Fauci testifies before HELP Committee hearing.

Dr. Anthony Fauci testified before the Senate HELP committee on Tuesday, stating that he would "not be surprised" if the United States eventually reports up to 100,000 new coronavirus cases per day, Axiosreports. "I'm very concerned and not satisfied with what’s going on because we're going in the wrong direction," Fauci said. 

According to CNN, at least 16 states have either paused or rolled back their reopening efforts amid an exponential spike in new cases across the country. Reuters reports that the U.S. saw an increase of 46 percent this past week, compared to the previous seven days. Meanwhile, 21 states have positive test rates that are above the level that the World Health Organization has deemed as "concerning." Fauci mentioned that 50 percent of the country's new cases are coming from Arizona, California, Florida, and Texas. 

Fauci believes this latest surge is due to some states moving "too quickly" to reopen, and "skipping over" some federal guidelines. As new cases in the U.S. soared past 2.5 million, Vice President Mike Pence made a public plea on Sunday to wear a mask, especially in states that are currently being hit the hardest. Pence's advice would fall on deaf ears later that day when around 2,200 people attended an indoor rally at the First Baptist Church in Dallas where over 100 choir members sang without a mask, and stood within close proximity of each other. 

Fauci warns that the rise in new coronavirus cases across the country could threaten the positive progress made by states, like New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut, which recently announced that the number of states under its quarantine order was being doubled to 16. 

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