Currently, at least 25 states are seeing surging coronavirus numbers, according to a report by CNN: Arizona, California, Colorado, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Kansas, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nevada, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming. Health experts say this spike in cases coincides with the reopening of many states several weeks ago. “The number of new cases had been stabilizing in early May, and actually the positivity rate [in testing] had been improving,” Will Humble, executive director of the Arizona Public Health Association, told CNN. “We came out of our stay-at-home order in the middle of May, and what we saw happening was that around May 26, that increase in cases that corresponded with the end of the stay-at-home order.” But seeing as many states are not willing to go back into lockdown, Fauci and other officials are urging Americans to take social distancing measures and face coverings seriously. During a House Energy and Commerce Committee hearing on June 23, Fauci said that many Americans, especially young people who largely have mild coronavirus cases, have a “lack of appreciation” for the “dual responsibility” they have in keeping themselves safe so that they can keep others—especially those in the high-risk categories—safe as well.ae0fcc31ae342fd3a1346ebb1f342fcb “What you can’t forget is that, if you get infected and spread the infection, even though you do not get sick, you are part of the process of the dynamics of an outbreak,” Fauci said. “So it’s a very difficult messaging when people say, ‘I’m young, I’m healthy, who cares?’ You should care not only for yourself, but for the impact you might have on the dynamics of the outbreak.” RELATED: For more up-to-date information, sign up for our daily newsletter. Fauci says the U.S. needs to get control of the coronavirus pandemic by fall—if it doesn’t, we’re “essentially chasing after a forest fire,” he said during the hearing. That’s because we’d be facing both flu season and the COVID-19 pandemic simultaneously, which Fauci says the U.S. healthcare system could not support. And for more from Fauci on the virus, check out Fauci Says This Is What’s Most “Disturbing” About Recent COVID-19 Numbers.
