Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky said Monday that there are two major concerns she has amid a recent uptick in COVID-19 cases — spring break enthusiasts and eased restrictions.
What is the CDC worried about?
Walensky said at a White House COVID-19 briefing on Wednesday that she’s concerned about how people have acted while on spring break, according to CNN.
- “What concerns me is the footage of what’s happening in spring breakers, in people who are not continuing to implement prevention strategies while we get fully scaled up.”
Walensky said it’s important for Americans to embrace public health guidances for a little longer so the country can escape the pandemic.
- “We need to hang in there for just a little while longer because we can see a time in the next couple of months where we will have a lot more people vaccinated and we will really be able to blunt infection rates,” she said, per CNN.
- “If we choose to invest in prevention right now, we will ultimately come out of this pandemic faster and with fewer lives lost,” she added, according to CNN.
Is the United States reopening too soon?
One of the major concerns among U.S. public health experts is whether the country is opening up a little too soon, as the Deseret News’ Jeff Parrott reported.
Andy Slavitt, a senior White House coronavirus response adviser, told reporters at a White House briefing that the country’s top leaders are worried about states lifting restrictions.
- “You’ve heard the president say, and you’ve heard both Dr. (Anthony) Fauci and Dr. Walensky say, that we believe it’s a mistake to get rid of mask mandates,” he said.
For example, Utah Gov. Spencer Cox signed a bill Wednesday that would lift the statewide mask mandate on April 10, as the Deseret News’ Katie McKellar reported. However, the bill leaves a mask requirement for schools and groups with more than 50 people.