Fauci: Staying Closed for Too Long Could Cause ‘Irreparable Damage’

Appearing Friday on CNBC’s Halftime Report, Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said keeping the United States shut down for too long could bring “irreparable damage” to the country.

A partial transcript is as follows:

SCOTT WAPNER: There’s a growing debate in this country about the pace and progress of reopening and I’d like to read you today a tweet from the former CEO Goldman Sachs Lloyd Blankfein and get your reaction to it, if I could: “Hospitals are not overwhelmed. Most of us will be exposed anyway since we can’t sequester until there’s a vaccine, and we know which groups need protection from worst outcomes. Is the public health benefit from broad lockdowns at this point worth such extreme damage to livelihoods?” There are also people who argue for herd immunity. How do you address what Mr. Blankfein is saying today and what others have said in the past days, that’s it’s just time to open this country up and protect the most vulnerable.

DR. ANTHONY FAUCI: A) We have no disagreement. We must protect the most vulnerable. And B) Yes, depending upon the dynamics of the infection in the particular state, city, region, county that you’re in we certainly want to in a cautious way, reopening. We can’t stay locked down for such a considerable period of time that you might to irreparable damage and have unintended consequences, including consequences for health. And it’s for that reason that guidelines are being put forth, so that the states and the cities can start reenter and to report.