>> WE DID NOT SCREW UP. >> WHERE DID THIs■k GO WRONG?
>> I DONT THINK CDC SCREWS UP
EITHER.
EITHER.
NOBODY EVER EXPECTED A THING LIKE THIS.R EXPECTED A THING
LIKE THIS.
>> JOINING ME NOW ISt( THE RESPONSE KWOURDAUNSONSE KWOIRDIN
CORONAVIRUS TASK FORCE.
WELCOME TO "MEET THE PRESS."
LETS START WITH THE FIRST
QUESTION THIS WAY.
IT TOOK FROM FEBRUARY 29th TO
MARCH 17th TO GET TO 100 DEATHS.
IT TOOK ANOTHER NINE DCk&■ TO GE
TO q1,000 fáDEATHS.
SADLY, IT TOOK 72 HOURSñr TO GET
TO q2,000 lpDEATHS.
DR. BIRX, WHERE ARE WE TODAY?
AND WHERE IS THIS HEADED INe1 TH
NEXT FEWe1 WEEKS?t(
>> WELL, THIS IS THE WAY
PANDEMICS WORK, AND THATS WHY
WE ALL ARE DEEPLY CONCERNED AND
WHY WE HAVE BEEN RAISING THE
ALERT IN ALL METROlp AREASq AND
ALL STATES.
ALL STATES. NO STATE, NOw3Ñi METRO AREA WILL
SPARED.
SPARED.
AND THE SOONER WE REACT AND THE SOONER THE STATES AND THE METRO
AREAS REACT AND INSURE THAT THEY
HAVE PUTxD IN FULL MITIGATION AT
THE SAME TIME UNDERSTANDING
EXACTLY WHAT THEIR HOSPITALS
NEED, THEN/
FORWARD TOGETHER AND PROTECT THE MOST AMERICANS.
MOST AMERICANS. THERES A NEW WEBSITE UP.
IT COMES FROM CHRISÑi MURRAY OUT
IN WASHINGTON STATE.
ITS ON THE IME WEBSITE, IMHES
WEBSITE.
WEBSITE.
IT PREDICTS, IT LOOKS AT THIS,
BILLED AS AN INFECTIOUS DIRk!SE MODEL. AS AN INFECTIOUS DIRk!SE
MODEL. >> I WOULD LOVE TO TAKE A LOOK
THAT.
THAT.
WHAT PART OF THIS MODEL, WHAT IS
IT TELLING YOU, AND WHATfá DOES
AND SO THAT IS STILL GOING ON, AND WE DO HAVE ENOUGH TESTS FOR
THAT.
THAT.
THE OFhGR PIECE OF THIS IS SURVEILLANCE.CE OF THIS IS
SURVEILLANCE.
SO WERE LOOKING ACROSS THE UNITED STATES FOR COUNTIES THAT
DO HAVE LOWER CASE NUMBERS RIGHT
NOW.
NOW.
TO SEE WHAT WE CAN DO RIGHT NOW IN ORDER TO REALLY PUT INTO NOW
IN ORDER TO REALLY PUT INTO PLACE FULL SURVEILLANCE, FULL
CONTACT TRACING, Anu■ FULL
DIAGNOSTIC CAPACITY TO INSURE
THAT CASES ARE FOU.Ep AND WE
CONTACT en%
CONTACT en%
WHILE
ITS NOT ENOUGH FOR US TO GET MATERIALS TO WAREHOUSES.
WE HAVE TOñr BE WORKING WITH THE
STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS
COMPREHENSIVELY TO INSURE THAT
EQUIPMENT AND SLYUPPLIES ARE
GETTING TO EACH HOSPITAL.
HOSPITALS ARE SO BUSY TAKING
CARE OF THE PEOPLE WHO ARE ILL,
THEY CANT BEH$ÑENDING TIME
DOINGi] INVENTORY.
DOINGi] INVENTORY. WE NEED TO HELP AND SUPPORT
THAT.
THAT.
>> WELL, THAT APPEARS TO ACTUALLY BE A PROBLEM, AND LOOK,
IM CURIOUS, WHAT ROLE DO YOU
PLAY IN-, DECIDING WHERE SPARE
VENTILATORS GO VERSUS THE ROLE
FEMA e1PLAYS?
FEMA e1PLAYS? AND THE REASON I ASK THAT IS
THERE SEEMS TO BE SOME
CONFUSION, GOVERNORSe1 ARE
COMPLAINING THEY FIND THEMSELVES
EITHER BIDDING AGAINST OTHER
STATES OR THE FEDERAL
GOVERNMENT.
GOVERNMENT.
UHEN IT COMES TO DIFFERENT EQUIPMENT ISSUES.DIFFERENT
EQUIPMENT ISSUES. SO IS THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENTq
GOING TO TAKE OVER ALL
PROCUREMENT AND DISPERSEMENT OF
MEDICAL EQUIPMENT OR f■1NOT?
>> I THINK AT THIS MOMENT, WERE
ASKING EVERY SINGLE GOVERNOR AND
EVERY SINGLE MAYOR TOl
LIKE NEW YORK ISñr PREPARING NOW
KNOW WHERE EVERY HOSPITAL IS,
PUBLIC, PRIVATE.
PUBLIC, PRIVATE. KNOW WHERE EVERY ONE OF YOUR
SURGICAL CENTERS ARE.
KNOW HOW TO CHANGE THE
ANESTHESIA VENTILATORS TO TAKE
CARE OF PEOPLE.
KNOW WHERE EVERY PIECEq OF
EQUIPMENT IN THEñrÑi STATE IS, K
HOW TO MOVE THE EQUIPMESó.
THE ONE THING WE CAN DO AS AMERICANS IS WE KNOW HOWoki] TO
INOVATD.
INOVATD.
ITS NoTi JUST WHAT YOU HAVE
EACH CITY WILL HAVE ITS OWN
EPIDEMIC CURVE, AND SO WEÑi CAN
mNaE BETWEEN STATES.
WE CAN MOVE WITHIN STATES TO MEADAN MOVE WITHIN STATES TO
MEAD
MEET THE NEEDS OF EVERYONE.
>> YOU SORT OF OVERLOOKED THE QUESTION, pUuy ABOUT IS THEHE
QUESTION, pUuy ABOUT IS THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT GOING TO TAKE
OVER AT LEAST THE PROCUj]Q
AND THE DISTRIBUTION OF THINGS
GOING FORWARD?
GOING FORWARD? >> WELL, I THINK THE FEDERAL
GOVERNMENT RIGHT NOW IS WORKING
VERY HARD ON LOOKING AT WHERE
ALL THE VENTILATORS ARE ANDe1
WHERE PRODUCTION CAN BE.
BUT WE NEED STATES AT THE SAME
TIME TOe1 LOOK WHERE ALL OF THEI
VENTILATORS ARE.e1
VENTILATORS ARE.e1 INCLUDING e1OUTPATIENT SURGICAL
CENTER, WHICH IS A?;■ REALLY
IMPORTANT PLACE TO BE DOéKING,
BECAUSE YOU GET STAFF PLUS
THEY HAVE ALSO THE CLEARLY,fá TH
CARDIAC MONITORING, BEING ABLE
TO MONITOR OXYGEN LEVELS.
ALL OF THAT CAN COME INTO THE
HOSPITALS TO CARE FOR PATIENTS.
BOTH OF THOSEfá PIECES NEED TO
COME TOGETHERS.
COME TOGETHERS.
THE GOVERNMENT LOOKING TO INCREASE PROCUREMENT AND STATES
LOOKING FOR EVERY SINGLE OPTIONt
THEY HAVE.
THEY HAVE. >> NEW YORK CITY, IF YOU COULD
QUARANTINE THE TRISTATE AREA,
AND THERES A LOT OF LEGAL
HURDLES TO THAT, IF YOU fáCOULD,
DO YOU THINK IT WOULD BE THE
BEST WAYfá TO SLOW THIS VIRUS f
DOW
>> WHEN WE LOOKED AT WHAT NEVD3 YORK STATE AND WHAT THE MAYOR
AND GOVERNOR DID OVER THE LAST
TEN DAYS, WHEN THOSE ALERTS WENT
OUT OF THEe1 INCREASED NUMBER OF
INFECTIONS, A LOT OFjF PEOPLE WH
COULD LEAVE NEW YORK LEFT NEW
YORK.
YORK.
AND SO WE IMMEDIATELY SAW CASES RISING OUT ON LONG ISLAND ANDES
RISING OUT ON LONG ISLAND AND CASES RISING IN SOUTHERN
FLORIDA.
FLORIDA.
WHAT WERE TRYING TO SAY TOi]Ñi EVERYONE IS WHEN THIS VIRUS]Ñi
EVERYONE IS WHEN THIS VIRUS COMES TO YOUR METRO AREA, PLEASE
STAY IN YOUR METRO AREA WHEREe1
YOUR CARE CAN BE PROVIDED,
BECAUSE ITS SPREADING VIRUS
MORE QUICKLY AROUND THE UNITED
STATES.
STATES.
>> SHOULD WE BE SHUTTING DOWN DOMESTIC AIR TRAVEL?TING DOWN
DOMESTIC AIR TRAVEL? I UNDERSTAND YOU NEED TO MOVE
AIRPLANES FORÑi SUPPLIES, FOR
PEOPLExDe1 q
PEOPLExDe1 q ENVIRONMENTS, BUT SHOULD THERE
BE SOME DOMESTIC AIR TRAVEL SHUT
DOWN?
DOWN?
IT DOESñr SEEM ODD THAT NEW YORK CITY AIRPORTS ARE WIDE OPEN FORB
PEOPLE TO LEAVE.
>> THE AMAZING THING TO ME, AND
WHAT HAS BEEN SO HEARTENING TO
ME,ND WHEN IxD WORK ON EPIDEMICS
AROUND THE GLOBE, ITS SEEING
COMMUNITIES COME TOGETHER.
AND COMMUNITIES HAVE
SELF-QUARANTINED AND
SELF-QUARANTINED AND SELF-ISOLATED THEMSELVES.
SELF-ISOLATED THEMSELVES. THE Ym■AMOUNT OF AIR TRAVEL IN A
OUT OF NEW YORK WE BELIEVE ISok
DOWN BY 90%.
METRO DOWN BY MORE THAN 90%.
SO PEOPLE ARE USING COMMON SENSE
TO PROTECT OTHERS.
WE ALSO HAVEe1 TO BE ABLE TO MOV
DOCTORS AND NURSES AROUND THE
UNITED STATES.
UNITED STATES.
THEYRE PART OF OUR SURGE tPCAPA YOU CAN SEE MANY HAVE COMEPCAPA
YOU CAN SEE MANY HAVE COME FORWARD AS VOLUNTEERS, AND WE
NEED TO BE ABLE áO GET THEM
PLACES.
PLACES.
>> AREt-áu GOING TO ANNOUNCE THE
NEW GUIDELINES -- GIVEN
EVERYTHING YOU HAVE JUST SAID,
GIVEN NO METRO AREA IS GOING TO
BE SPARED AT THIS POINT RIGHT
NOW, THATS YOUR CONCERN, SHOULD
WE ASSUME THESE 15-DAY
GUIDELINES ARE GOING TO GET EXTENDED ANOTHER 15 DAYS,ET
EXTENDED ANOTHER 15 DAYS, THROUGH THExD END OF APRIL?
WHATS REALISTIC,e1 DR. BIRX?
>> WHAT I WANTED TO BE VERY
CLEAR ON IS EVERYe1 METRO AREA
SHOULD ASSUME THAT THEY COULD
HAVE AN OUTBREAK EQUIVALENT TO
NEW YORK, AND DO EVERYTHING
RIGHT NOW TO PREVENT IT.
IF THEY MITIGATE NOW, BEFORE
THEY START SEEING CASESxD INw3 T
EMERGENCY ROOM AND IN THE
HOSPITAL, ONCE YOU SEE THOSE,
THE VIRUS HAS BEEN SPREADING FOR
DAYS TOxD WEEKS.
SO THIS IS REALLY MY CALL ON
EVERY MAYOR TOñrÑi PREPARE NOW.
>> SOq IT SOUNDS LIKE THESEi] W
EXTENDED AT LEAST ANOTHER COUPLE
WEEKS.
WEEKS.
IS THAT FAIR?
AS AMERICANSq ARE WATCHING, SHOULD THEY BE PREPARED TO BE
0UNKERING DOWN FOR THE RESTe1
APRIL?
APRIL?
>> MY JOB TODAY IS TO PUT ALL
THE DATA TOGETHER,i] THE INTEGRATED DATA OFe1 TESTING, CA
REPORTING, THE GLOBAL SITUATION,
AND PREPARE THE BEST BRIEFING I FOR THE PRE
PRESIDENT SO THEY HAVE ALL THE?; FOR THE PRE
PRESIDENT SO THEY HAVE ALL THE?; DATA TOok MAKEq THE DECISION THA
BEST FOR THEÑi AMERICAN PEOPLE.
>> SO ARE YOU -- WHAT IS YOUR
RECOMMENDATION?
RECOMMENDATION?
WHAT RECOMMENDATION ARE YOU
GOING TO BE GIVING TO THEM OR
ARE YOU NOT SHARING THAT WITH
US?
>> IM GOING TO SHARE IT WITHlp
THE PRESIDENT AND VICE PRESIDENT
FIRST.
>> ALL RIGHT.
DR. BIRX, I WILL LEAVE IT THERE. STAY SAFE.I WILL LEAVE IT THERE.
STAY SAFE. STAY HEALTHY.
STAY HEALTHY. AND WERE ALL WANTING TO DEFEAT