‘We’re not in the end zone yet’ on COVID pandemic in US, Fauci warns

As COVID-19 vaccines roll out across the United States, it’s still “risky business” to cast away face masks and other safety precautions, says Dr. Anthony Fauci.

“Don’t spike the ball on the five-yard line,” Fauci said Sunday on NBC’s “Meet the Press.” “Wait until you get into the end zone. We are not in the end zone yet.”

Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said the United States is heading “in the right direction” in the COVID-19 pandemic, but it’s too soon to declare victory.

“When I hear pulling back completely on public health measures, saying no more masks, no nothing like that, that is risky business,” Fauci told “Meet the Press.”

Several states, including Texas, Mississippi, Iowa and Montana, have lifted mask mandates, while others have set upcoming expiration dates for mask orders, NBC News reported.

On “Fox News Sunday,” Fauci said a projection by President Joe Biden that the United States could reach some degree of normality by July 4 was feasible.

“Those are quite reasonable goals and expectations,” Fauci told Fox News. “If you look at the number of vaccines that are going into people now, I think that goal of anybody 18 years of age or older will be able to get a vaccine by May 1 ... that’s quite reasonable.”

Scott Gottlieb, former U.S. Food and Drug Administration chief, warned on CBS “Face the Nation” that variant strains of the coronavirus still pose a threat.

“But there will be pockets of outbreaks and there will be pockets where some of these variants become more prevalent that could look bad even though the rest of the nation is going to look very good,” Gottlieb told “Face the Nation.”

More than 101.1 million coronavirus vaccine doses have been administered in the United States, reaching 19.9% of the U.S. population, National Public Radio reported. More than 2.3 million shots are administered each day in the United States.

Three COVID-19 vaccines have been authorized for emergency use in the United States.

More than 119 million cases of COVID-19 have been confirmed worldwide with more than 2.6 million deaths as of March 14, according to Johns Hopkins University. The United States has more than 29 million confirmed cases with more than 534,000 deaths.

This story was originally published March 14, 2021 at 1:37 PM.