Dr. Scott Atlas is being judged by his employer and the court of public opinion after claiming that families should gather over the holidays in spite of the global pandemic.
On an episode of Fox News' The Story with Martha MacCallum, the Stanford fellow and White House Coronavirus Task Force member claimed large gatherings should occur over Thanksgiving with elderly relatives. Atlas said that many older people are living through their last Thanksgiving and might die before they get another chance to gather with their families.
"This kind of isolation is one of the unspoken tragedies of the elderly who are now being told don't see your family at Thanksgiving. For many people this is their final Thanksgiving, believe it or not," Atlas said. "What are we doing here? I think we have to have a policy, which I have been advocating, which is a whole person, whole health policy. It's not about just stopping cases of COVID. We have to talk about the damage of the policy itself."
The dangerous recommendation, as well as Atlas' recent tweet that people "rise up" against COVID-19 health measures, led to an immediate condemnation from Stanford.
"Stanford’s position on managing the pandemic in our community is clear. We support using masks, social distancing, and conducting surveillance and diagnostic testing. We also believe in the importance of strictly following the guidance of local and state health authorities," the California university wrote in a statement. "Dr. Atlas has expressed views that are inconsistent with the university’s approach in response to the pandemic."
His reckless comments also earned rebukes from institutions like the Washington Post, other television news hosts, Dr. Fauci, the president-elect and Paul Stanley of KISS.
