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VOA Interview: Fauci Optimistic About COVID Vaccine; Urges Protesters to Wear
Masks

VOA Russian Service

   As U.S. cases of COVID-19 passed two million, VOA's Russian service
   discussed the pandemic with Dr. Anthony Fauci, the director of the
   National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease. Fauci urged those
   taking part in protests around the country to protect themselves and
   wear a mask. The wide-ranging interview also touched on states'
   reopening and efforts to find a vaccine. Below is an edited transcript.

   VOA: My first question is about the correlation between the ongoing
   mass protests and the possibility of a new spike, because it became
   public that members of the DC National Guard have already tested
   positive for COVID. From your point of view, are these cases only the
   beginning of possible mass outbreaks?

   Fauci: Well, I think we have to be careful because we don't know how
   it's actually going to turn out. But as I have been saying for some
   time, gathering in crowds is a risk and gathering in crowds without a
   mask is an even bigger risk. And when you have demonstrations, even
   though you can understand the reason and the need to exercise your
   constitutional right to demonstrate something that you feel strongly
   about, my recommendation has always been that one has to be really
   careful to avoid crowded places. If you do do it, which I don't
   recommend you do, but if you do, you make sure you wear a mask and keep
   a mask on all the time.

   But in answer to your question, obviously there is a risk when people
   congregate in a very crowded way, particularly if they're shouting or
   chanting. There is a risk that there will be spread of infection
   leading to a surge of new infections. And that's one of the things
   we're keeping an eye out on. And it was very disturbing to see that
   some of the actual National Guard who were there actually were
   infected, which means that there's the possibility, maybe a likelihood
   that they would have infected other people or were infected from other
   people.

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