Dr. Deborah Birx said she is “very worried” that a post-Thanksgiving surge in coronavirus cases will be far worse than the surge seen following Memorial Day, reversing mitigation progress and exacerbating already worsening conditions elsewhere.
“If you look at the second wave going into the Memorial Day weekend, we had less than 25,000 cases a day. We had only 30,000 inpatients in the hospital, and we had way less mortality, way under 1,000,” Birx said on Sunday. “We’re entering this post-Thanksgiving surge with three, four, and 10 times as much disease across the country. And so that’s what worries us the most. We saw what happened post-Memorial Day.”
Before the Memorial Day surge, the United States was reporting fewer than 25,000 cases a day, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. Driven by surges in the Sunbelt, cases soared to a peak of more than 70,000 daily caseloads decreased again.
Going into the Thanksgiving holiday weekend, the U.S. was averaging more than 160,000 cases every day. In November alone, the U.S. reported more than 4 million coronavirus cases, smashing the previous record of 1.9 million cases in the month of October.
“Now, we are deeply worried about what could happen post-Thanksgiving because the number of cases, 25,000 versus 180,000 a day — that’s why we are deeply concerned,” Birx said. “And as you described, it looked like things were starting to improve in our Northern Plains states. And now, with Thanksgiving, we’re worried that all of that will be reversed.”
Birx emphasized that widespread mask use is vital to curbing the spread of the coronavirus, adding that mask mandates should be enforced before governments move to close bars and other areas that bring crowds together. With cooling temperatures and earlier nightfalls making people less likely to opt for outdoor socializing, Birx conceded that closing some establishments may be necessary.
“What we do know works is mask mandates, mask requirements,” Birx said. “In states that did those or mayors or counties that did that, we can see a really significant difference in not only cases but hospitalizations and fatalities. And so starting with mask mandates and masking requirements absolutely key, followed by, if you have high case numbers and you’re seeing increased hospitalizations, the first thing you should do is close spaces where people cannot wear a mask. And we know where that is. That’s bars and indoor restaurants. Reduce capacity if needed. You may have to even close them. We have seen that that works.”
