Despite its early pandemic success, one of the world’s leading infectious diseases experts says Canada faces a worse situation until the release of COVID-19 vaccine and that the country needs to “double” its public health measures.
“Right now, the whole world is in trouble. If you look at almost every country, there are very few exceptions,” said Dr. Anthony Fauci, Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. (NIAID), said in the interview with CBC News.
“The number of new infections in the European Union is out of control. So is the United States. Canada, which is supposed to be doing very well, is also in trouble. There are a lot of cases in the community.”
The virus mainly spreads “at the household level” among smaller groups of people who may not even know they’re infected – something to be wary of during holidays and colder months, Fauci said.
Fauci said just having a safe and effective COVID-19 vaccine is not enough, as we also need to convince “the vast majority” of the population to use it, which could be a challenge – especially in the United States.
“There is a lot of anti-scientific skepticism against vaccines in the country by people who don’t want to be vaccinated,” he said.
Fauci said politicians and public health officials at local levels also need to step in to impose stringent measures to control the virus because the national ban will not work in countries. family like the United States.
He said that as many people are experiencing “COVID fatigue” due to a pandemic that has lasted for nearly a year, it is important to focus on reducing transmission in the community during the winter months.
This content is also available in: Tiếng Việt
