The novel coronavirus might not be under control until early 2022, according to Dr. Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.
When will COVID-19 end?
Fauci told CNN on Monday that the U.S. could put the pandemic away if a majority of people get vaccinated by early 2022.
- “We hope we’ll be there ... but there’s no guarantee because it’s up to us,” Fauci said.
On Tuesday, Fauci told the “Today” show that vaccination will be key to stopping the pandemic.
- “If we do it right and get through the winter, I hope as we get to the spring of 2022, we’ll get there,” he said on the “Today” show.
What vaccine approval means for the end of COVID-19
Fauci made these comments after the Food and Drug Administration gave full approval for the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine for those 16 years old and up. The vaccine is still approved for emergency use for children 12 to 15 years old. Anyone under 12 does not have the approval to get the COVID-19 vaccine yet.
- Fauci told the “Today” show that children under 12 might have approval for vaccination by “mid late fall, early winter.”
Fauci said on the “Today” show that the approval is a good sign for the direction of the pandemic.
- “We can see light at the end of the tunnel where … you see a dramatic diminution, not only in cases, but in hospitalizations and ultimately, of course, in deaths,” he said.
- Fauci told the “Today” show that “there will now be much more enthusiasm in mandating vaccines” which he believes “will contribute greatly to the number of people vaccinated.”