President Donald Trump on Monday said he will not shut down the United States to curb the spread of the CCP virus, saying that doing so would cause more harm than good.
“It’s important for all Americans to recognize that a permanent lockdown is not a viable path forward producing the result that you want or certainly not a viable path forward and would ultimately inflict more harm than it would prevent,” Trump said during a White House news briefing on the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, a novel coronavirus that causes the COVID-19 disease.
Governors initially shut down states in an attempt to prevent COVID-19 patients from overwhelming hospitals and medical staff and also to allow scientists and doctors to ascertain the impact of the virus, including using treatments to fight it, the president said.
“Lockdowns do not prevent infection in the future. They just don’t. It comes back many times, it comes back,” Trump said.
On Sunday, more than 47,000 new cases of the CCP virus was reported across the United States, according to researchers. The 47,511 new cases reported by The Wall Street Journal, which cited the university’s data, is the lowest number of cases since July 6, when about 44,900 were registered. A day before that, on Aug. 1, more than 58,000 cases of the virus were reported nationwide, and on July 31, about 67,000 cases were noted.
California reported about 9,032 new cases, and Florida reported 7,084 cases on Aug. 1, according to the researchers’ data.
Trump, meanwhile, called on Americans to remain “vigilant” against the virus, while noting that 18 states have reported lower cases. They include New Jersey, Connecticut, and New York, which were once considered the CCP virus hotspots earlier this year.
“We must focus on protecting those at highest risk while allowing younger and healthier Americans to resume work and school with careful precautions,” Trump said. “Ideally we want to open those schools. We want to open them.”
A day before that, top White House COVID-19 expert Dr. Deborah Birx said that there is now widespread cases being reported.
“What we are seeing today is different from March and April. It is extraordinarily widespread. It’s into the rural as equal urban areas,” she said in an interview on Sunday.
Americans should follow health care professionals’ recommendations, including practicing social distancing and wearing a protective mask, she said.
“To everybody who lives in a rural area, you are not immune or protected from this virus,” Birx told CNN. “If you’re in multi-generational households, and there’s an outbreak in your rural area or in your city, you need to really consider wearing a mask at home, assuming that you’re positive, if you have individuals in your households with comorbidities.”
