MONTHS FROM NOW AFTER WE SHUT DOWN THE COUNTRY LIKE EVERY
OTHER MAJOR POWER ON THIS
PLANET.
PLANET. >> THE WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION
SAYS NOW THE U.S. HAS THE
POTENTIAL TO BECOME THE NEW
EPICENTER OF THE VIRUS WITH
NEARLY 55,000 CASES, MORE THAN
10,000 WITHIN THE LAST 24 HOURS.
THE AGENCY SAYS THE U.S. NOW
REPRESENTS 40% OF ALL NEW CASES
WORLDWIDE.
WORLDWIDE. COMBINED WITH EUROPE, THE
WESTERN WORLD REPRESENTS 85% OF
ALL NEW CASES WORLDWIDE.
WE WANT VERY MUCH TO GET TO OUR
NEXT GUEST WHO JOINS US NOW, I
BELIEVE, FROM THE WORLD HEALTH
ORGANIZATION, DAN, AM I CORRECT?
DR. BRUCE JOINS US NOW.
DOCTOR, FROM YOUR PERSPECTIVE,
THE PRESIDENT SAYS WE’RE GOING
TO OPEN UP BY EASTER.
OUR TOP EXPERT, DR. FAUCI, SAYS
THAT’S FLEXIBLE.
THAT’S FLEXIBLE. I THINK HE MIGHT BE RECEIVING
PRESSURE FROM THE PRESIDENT.
SHOULD THE UNITED STATES
LOCKDOWN OR WHAT’S THE BEST
GUIDANCE FOR THE U.S. AT THIS
POINT?
POINT? >> WELL, WHAT WE LOOK AT IS WHAT
WORKS AND WHAT HAVE WE SEEN WORK
AROUND THE WORLD?
AND RIGHT NOW THERE’S VERY, VERY
FEW COUNTRIES THAT HAVE ACTUALLY
BEEN ABLE TO REVERSE THIS --
THIS EPIDEMIC AND BRING THEIR
CASES DOWN TO VERY LOW LEVEL.
IN FACT, THE ONLY COUNTRY THAT’S
DONE THAT IS CHINA.
AND IT DID DO FUNDAMENTAL THINGS
TO ACHIEVE THAT.
THE FIRST THING IT DID WAS IT
SPACED THE PEOPLE, YOU KNOW,
THROUGH SHUTDOWNS AND LOCKDOWNS,
ET CETERA, REDUCING THE AMOUNT
OF SOCIETAL CONTACTS, IT SPACED
THE PEOPLE.
THE PEOPLE. BUT THE SECOND FUNDAMENTAL THING
THAT IT DID WAS IT TRIED TO STOP
THE CHANGE OF TRANSMISSION BY
TESTING EVERY SINGLE SUSPECT
CASE, BY THEN ISOLATING AND
MAKING SURE EFFECTIVE ISOLATION
OF ALL THE CASES AND THEN
QUARANTINING OF THEIR CLOSE
CONTACTS.
CONTACTS. IT WAS THAT COMBINATION, NOT ONE
PIECE OR THE OTHER.
LOCKDOWN, SLOW DOWN A VIRUS LIKE
THIS, YOU HAVE GOT TO FIND THOSE
TRANSMISSION CHAINS, CUT THEM TO
ACTUALLY STOP IT.
>> AT THE RATE OF INFECTION THAT
WE’RE SEEING IN THE U.S., DO YOU
FORESEE THE U.S. BEING ABLE TO
REDUCE RESTRICTIONS AND
GUIDELINES IN THE NEXT FEW
WEEKS?
WEEKS? >> I THINK -- I THINK THE DATA
ARE GOING TO TELL US THAT AS IT
UNFOLDS.
UNFOLDS. AND, YOU KNOW, THE U.S. IS A
GIGANTIC COUNTRY SO IT’S VERY
DIFFICULT TO SAY SOMETHING IS
GOING TO HAPPEN RIGHT ACROSS THE
WHOLE COUNTRY.
WHOLE COUNTRY. YOU’RE GOING TO SEE THIS EVOLVE
DIFFERENTLY IN EACH PART OF THE
COUNTRY.
COUNTRY. AND, AGAIN, IF I JUST GO BACK
FOR A SECOND TO CHINA, YOU HAD
THE WUHAN EXPERIENCE WHICH IS
VERY, VERY UNIQUE, BUT YOU HAD
30 OTHER PROVINCES THAT LEARNED
FROM THAT THAT MOVED VERY, VERY
FAST ON THE KEY FUNCTIONS THAT I
JUST TOLD YOU ABOUT.
AND AS A RESULT, THEY HAD VERY,
VERY DIFFERENT OUTBREAKS AND
THEY WERE ABLE TO GET FUNCTIONAL
AGAIN MUCH MORE RAPIDLY THAN
WE’VE SEEN IN WUHAN WHERE WE’RE
NEARLY THREE MONTHS IN BEFORE
THEY’RE LIFTING IT.
IT WOULD BE 2 1/2 MONTHS FROM
WHEN IT FIRST HIT AND FIRST PUT
THE MEASURES IN PLACE THERE AND
WHEN THEY ACTUALLY LIFTED THEM.
>> DOCTOR, I WANT TO SHOW YOU A
CHART THAT WE’VE BEEN SHOWING
OUR AUDIENCE THIS MORNING.
I’M NOT SURE IF YOU CAN SEE IT
WHERE YOU ARE, BUT THIS CHART
ACTUALLY IT’S THE JOHNS HOPKINS
NUMBERS.
NUMBERS. >> YEAH.
>> YEAH. >> AND THAT THE FINANCIAL TIMES
PUTS IN EVERY DAY.
IF WE CAN ZOOM IN, GUYS, LIKE WE
DID LAST TIME, THE UNITED STATES
OBVIOUSLY ABOVE EVERYBODY ELSE
NOW, ABOVE CHINA, ABOVE SPAIN,
AND WE’RE ACTUALLY MUCH CLOSER
TO THE LINE WHERE WE DOUBLE
EVERY TWO DAYS.
THERE’S ANOTHER CHART, I’M NOT
GOING TO SHOW HERE, THAT SHOWS
NEW YORK CITY’S RATE OF
INFECTION GOING STRAIGHT UP.
WHAT IS -- YOU’RE SEEING THE
UNITED STATES AND SPAIN AND
ITALY.
ITALY. I WANTED TO ASK, HOW -- IF WE
SEPARATE AND AMERICANS GET MORE
AGGRESSIVE ON THAT, HOW LONG
UNTIL THAT TREND LINE STARTS TO
CURVE?
CURVE? BECAUSE WE OBVIOUSLY ARE GOING
TO ZOOM PAST CHINA AND ITALY AND
SPAIN WITHIN THE NEXT THREE --
NEXT TWO DAYS, ACTUALLY.
>> YEAH.
>> YEAH. YEAH.
YEAH. SO THE CRITICAL THING WHEN
YOU’VE GOT A RAPIDLY INCREASE
RATE OF INCREASE OF DISEASE LIKE
THIS, YOU HAVE FABULOUS EXPERTS,
THE BEST PEOPLE IN THE WORLD
THERE IN THE U.S. GUIDING ON
THIS, PEOPLE LIKE TONY ARE JUST
SUPERB.
SUPERB. BUT THE FIRST THING YOU’VE GOT
TO DO IS TRY TO TAKE THE HEAT
OUT OF THIS THING, SLOW IT DOWN,
AND YOU’VE GOT TO MAKE IT
DIFFICULT FOR THE VIRUS.
REMEMBER, THIS IS A VIRUS AND AS
OTHER SPEAKERS HAVE SAID, IT
SURVIVES IN PEOPLE AND IT’S GOT
TO GET FROM ONE PERSON TO
ANOTHER PERSON.
ANOTHER PERSON. EVERY PERSON IN THE U.S. HAS GOT
TO MAKE IT MORE DIFFICULT FOR
THAT VIRUS WHICH MEANS THAT
PHYSICAL DISTANCING PEOPLE ARE
TALKING ABOUT, WHICH MEANS THE
HAND WASHING PEOPLE ARE TALKING
ABOUT, WHICH MEANS THE
RESPIRATORY PRECAUTIONS.
RESPIRATORY PRECAUTIONS. BECAUSE IF YOU DO ALL OF THOSE
THINGS, YOU MAKE IT HARD ON THE
VIRUS.
VIRUS. YOU SLOW IT DOWN.
NOW, IT TAKES A LITTLE TIME TO
SEE THE IMPACT OF THOSE.
IT CAN TAKE AS MUCH AS TWO
WEEKS, EVEN IF YOU DO IT
EXTREMELY WELL, BECAUSE,
REMEMBER, AS SOON AS YOU PUT
THOSE IN PLACE, YOU ALREADY HAVE
A LOT OF PEOPLE WHO HAVE BEEN
EXPOSED.
EXPOSED. THEY’RE INCUBATING THE DISEASE
AND THAT CAN TAKE ONE, TWO WEEKS
FOR THE INCUBATED DISEASE, LET’S
SAY, TO MANIFEST.
SO IT CAN TAKE A WHILE FOR THOSE
MEASURES TO KICK IN.
AND THAT’S VERY DIFFICULT FOR A
POPULATION, IT’S VERY
FRUSTRATING FOR A POPULATION
REASONED IT’S,
REASONED IT’S, AND IT’S REALLY HARD FOR THE
LEADERS WHO HAVE TO GUIDE A
POPULATION THROUGH THESE
MEASURES.
MEASURES. >> DOCTOR, WE’RE GOING TO STAY
WITH YOU.
WITH YOU. I’M GOING TO THANK JON MEACHAM
FOR BEING WITH US AS WE CONTINUE
TALK.
TALK. THANK YOU VERY MUCH, JON.
DOCTOR, YOU LOOK AT THE CHART
AND WHAT’S REMARKABLE TO ME IS
HOW EAST DOES NOT MEET WEST.
THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN COUNTRIES
IN THE EAST AND COUNTRIES IN THE
WESTERN CIVILIZATION.
WESTERN CIVILIZATION. AND, YES, WE COULD SAY THAT
CHINA, OF COURSE, IMPOSED
RESTRICTIONS THAT WE CAN’T IN A
DEMOCRACY.
DEMOCRACY. BUT JAPAN IS A DEMOCRACY, SOUTH
KOREA DEMOCRACY.
KOREA DEMOCRACY. AND YOU SEE THAT SOUTH KOREA,
JAPAN, SINGAPORE, AND HONG KONG,
THESE FOUR ASIAN COUNTRIES OR
CITY STATES WERE ABLE TO FLATTEN
THE CURVE EXTRAORDINARILY WELL.
TALK ABOUT THE DIFFERENCE
BETWEEN WHAT’S HAPPENED IN ASIA
AND WHAT’S HAPPENED IN EUROPE
AND THE UNITED STATES.
>> SURE.
>> SURE. AS YOU MAY HAVE -- MAY KNOW, I
ACTUALLY SPENT TWO WEEKS IN
CHINA AT REALLY THE PEAK AND
JUST PAST THE PEAK OF THE CRISIS
THERE.
THERE. AND WHAT I SAW WAS AN
EXTRAORDINARY EFFORT.
EXTRAORDINARY EFFORT. I ALSO KNOW THE SOUTH KOREAN --
WE HAD SOUTH KOREANS, JAPANESE,
SINGAPORE FOLKS ALL WITH US,
ACTUALLY, IN THAT MISSION TO
CHINA WHERE WE REALLY EXAMINED
WHAT WAS ACTUALLY HAPPENING
THERE, WHAT WAS TAKING THE HEAT
OUT OF THIS THING.
AND, YOU KNOW, WHAT WAS MOST
STRIKING FOR ME WAS THE ASIAN
SOCIETY.
SOCIETY. IT WASN’T WHAT I WAS BEING TOLD
IN TERMS OF THE MEASURES BEING
IMPOSED BY GOVERNMENT, IT WAS
THE PASSION, THE DILIGENCE, THE
SENSE OF RESPONSIBILITY, THE
SERIOUSNESS OF THE AVERAGE
CHINESE.
CHINESE. AND I WANT TO USE THAT TERM VERY
CAREFULLY, BECAUSE THEY WEREN’T
AVERAGE, THEY ARE EXTRAORDINARY
PEOPLE.
PEOPLE. BUT THEY WERE DRIVEN BY A SENSE
OF COLLECTIVE RESPONSIBILITY FOR
THEIR ELDERLY, FOR THEIR
POPULATION.
POPULATION. AND THEY -- THEY JUST HAD AN
EXTRAORDINARY UNDERSTANDING OF
THE DISEASE AND A COMMITMENT TO
DO WHAT WAS EVER NECESSARY.
MY TRANSLATOR WHEN I WAS IN
WUHAN THERE ARE WAS A YOUNG
WOMAN FROM ANOTHER PART OF CHINA
JUST HAPPENED TO BE IN WUHAN ON
THE DAY THE LOCKDOWN CAME AND
SHE WAS THERE FOR A MONTH AT
THAT POINT.
THAT POINT. I ASKED HER, WOW, THIS MUST BE
REALLY DIFFICULT.
REALLY DIFFICULT. I SAW HER CELL PHONE AND THERE
WAS A PICTURE TWO OF GORGEOUS
LITTLE KIDS ON IT.
I SAID I GUESS THEY’RE HERE WITH
YOU, THOUGH.
YOU, THOUGH. SHE SAID, NO, THEY’RE A THOUSAND
KILOMETERS AWAY.
KILOMETERS AWAY. BUT THIS IS MY DUTY.
THIS IS WHAT WE NEED TO DO.
IT’S NOT ABOUT ME AS AN
INDIVIDUAL, IT’S ABOUT US.
AND, YOU KNOW, THAT WAS WHAT
ENABLED CHINA AND THEN SOUTH
KOREA AND JAPAN, ET CETERA, VERY
SIMILAR.
SIMILAR. THEY’RE ALL DOING THE SAME
THING.
THING. THEY ARE PUTTING SHUTDOWNS IN
PLACE WHERE NECESSARY TO SLOW IT
DOWN, BUT THEN THEY ARE
MOBILIZING THEIR WHOLE
POPULATION TO HELP WITH THE
IDENTIFICATION, TESTING,
IDENTIFICATION, TESTING, ISOLATION, AND THEN QUARANTINE
AND SUPPORTING PEOPLE WHO ARE IN
QUARANTINE.
QUARANTINE. SO IT’S A REAL MOVEMENT IN THESE
COUNTRIES TO APPLY NOT JUST THE
BIG SHUTDOWNS, BECAUSE THAT JUST
SLOWS IT DOWN.
BUT ALSO THOSE OTHER FUNDAMENTAL
PIECES WHICH TAKE A MASSIVE
MOBILIZATION OF PEOPLE TO
EFFECTIVELY, YOU KNOW, FLATTEN
IT, AS YOU’RE SEEING THERE NOW.
THAT’S THE BIG DIFFERENCE.
IT’S THE SECOND PIECE OF THIS
WHICH IS SO IMPORTANT TO BRING
YOUR POPULATION WITH YOU TO BE
ABLE TO IMPLEMENT.
>> WELL, AND, OF COURSE,
UNFORTUNATELY THE STATE OF
FLORIDA WHILE WE KEEP THIS CHART
UP, WE’VE BEEN SEEING PICTURES
OF SPRING BREAK, WE’VE SEEN
PICTURES OF HUNDREDS OF HUNDREDS
OF STUDENTS ON SAND BAR.
I HAD ONE PERSON WHO TOOK THEIR
BOAT PAST THAT SAND BAR TELLING
ME THAT HE’S LIVED HERE HIS
ENTIRE LIFE AND IT WAS THE MOST
CROWD THE SAND BAR EVER WAS.
THAT’S WHILE OUR RATE IS STILL
GOING UP.
GOING UP. GOLF COURSES ACROSS FLORIDA --
>> NEW ORLEANS.
>> -- THEY CAN’T ACTUALLY -- TEE
TIMES ARE MORE JAMMED, THE GOLF
COURSES ARE MORE JAMMED THAN
EVER.
EVER. THERE’S A REAL SENSE THAT WHAT
YOU SAW IN ASIA WE’RE NOT SEEING
HERE.
HERE. I WANT TO SHOW YOU THE NEXT
CHART, DOCTOR.
CHART, DOCTOR. AND THIS IS OF CITIES AND
REGIONS THAT HAVE BEEN IMPACTED.
AND, OF COURSE, YOU SEE WUHAN,
LOMBARDY, MADRID, AND
WASHINGTON, LONDON, BUT YOU LOOK
ALL THE WAY TO THE LEFT, MY GOD,
NEW YORK CITY ACTUALLY CLOSE TO
THE LINE WHERE THE DEATHS WILL
DOUBLE EVERY DAY.
TALK ABOUT THOSE TREND LINES IN
NEW YORK CITY AND IF IT IS TRUE
WHAT I HEARD FROM HEALTH
OFFICIALS YESTERDAY THAT NEW
YORK IS ACTUALLY GOING TO END UP
BEING AS BAD AS ITALY OR PERHAPS
WORSE.
WORSE. IS IT TOO LATE TO OVERT THAT
DISASTER?
DISASTER? >> YOU KNOW, I STRONGLY BELIEVE
YOU ALWAYS FIGHT YOUR WARS
FORWARD, RIGHT?
FORWARD, RIGHT? AND YOU ARE WHERE YOU ARE IN
TERMS OF THE SITUATION IN NEW
YORK.
YORK. AND THE EXTRAORDINARY MEASURES
THAT ARE BEING PUT IN PLACE ARE
ABSOLUTELY WHAT’S GOING TO BE
NEEDED AS YOU GO FORWARD.
YOU KNOW, THIS EFFORT TO CREATE
MASSIVE ISOLATION CAPACITY TO BE
ABLE TO GET SICK PEOPLE OUT OF
HOUSES, OUT OF CRAMPED AREAS
WHERE THEY MAY BE CONTRIBUTING
TO THE DISEASE, THIS MASSIVE
EFFORTS TO HELP PEOPLE
UNDERSTAND THEIR ROLE IN
TRANSMISSION AND TO REALLY SLOW
THIS DOWN.
THIS DOWN. BECAUSE IF YOU WANT TO SAVE
LIVES IN A CRISIS LIKE THIS,
PART OF IT IS TREATING THE SICK,
YES, BUT THE OTHER THING IS YOU
HAVE GOT TO REDUCE THE NUMBER OF
SICK SO THAT YOUR HEALTH
FACILITIES, YOU KNOW, YOUR
FABULOUS DOCTORS, NURSES, HEALTH
CARE WORKERS, PHYSIOS IN NEW
YORK CAN DO THEIR LIFE SAVING
WORK.
WORK. BUT YOU’VE GOT TO TAKE SOME
STRAIN OFF THEM BY TAKING SOME
OF THE HEAT OUT OF THIS THING BY
PROPERLY ISOLATING THE MILD
CASES AS WELL.
MAKING SURE EVERYONE WHO HAS
COVID KNOW THEY HAVE IT.
BECAUSE ONE OF THE DANGERS WITH
THIS DISEASE, YOU KNOW, THEY
CALLED IT A MILD ILLNESS, BUT
THE REALITY IS PEOPLE WILL GET
THE VIRUS, THEY MAY FEEL BETTER
A COUPLE DAYS LATER AND THEY MAY
THINK NOW I’M FINE, I CAN WANDER
BOCK BACK OUT INTO SOCIETY.
BUT THOSE HEALTHY PEOPLE WHO HAD
MILD DISEASE CAN STILL SHED THAT
VIRUS FOR 14 DAYS WHICH MEANS
THEY COULD GO BACK OUT AND START
THIS THING ALL OVER AGAIN.
SO, YOU KNOW, YOU’VE GOT TO
ADDRESS ALL OF THOSE PIECES IF
YOU WANT THAT TREND LINE IN NEW
YORK TO CHANGE.
CAN IT CHANGE?
ABSOLUTELY.
ABSOLUTELY. BUT THAT REQUIRES ALL OF THE
PEOPLE OF NEW YORK WORKING WITH
THE GOVERNOR, WORKING WITH THE
MAYOR TO GET THE MEASURES THAT
THEY KNOW.
THEY KNOW. THEY’RE SAYING THE RIGHT THINGS,
THEY UNDERSTAND THIS DISEASE.
>> DOCTOR, THANK YOU VERY MUCH
FOR BEING ON WITH US THIS