Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) and a member of the White House Coronavirus Task Force, said on Wednesday that the United States should be prepared for the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) to be seasonally cyclical.
Speaking at a White House briefing, the top health official noted that the virus has now traveled to the southern hemisphere, currently shifting into the colder season, while noting that whenever there is an outbreak in the southern hemisphere, a comeback of the disease “will be inevitable”, even if it temporarily disappears in the northern hemisphere.
"I know we'll be successful in putting this down now, but we really need to be prepared for another cycle," Fauci said.
Fauci expected COVID-19 to make a comeback in the fall, although new studies show that the spread of the disease may slack off in North America and Europe by the summer, due to high temperatures.
The top US health official noted that steps the US is taking now, including the development of potential vaccines and other drug treatments, will be essential if the disease reemerges.
As of Wednesday, Johns Hopkins University reported that there are over 66,000 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and at least 827 deaths related to the disease in the United States.
