WE WANT TO BE DOING OUR MANUFACTURING AT HOME.
LOU: AND JOINING US TONIGHT IS
THE PRESIDENT’S SECRETARY OF
HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES,
SECRETARY ALEX AZAR.
HE’S ALSO THE CHAIRMAN OF THE
PRESIDENT’S CORONAVIRUS TASK
FORCE.
FORCE. MR. SECRETARY, GOOD TO HAVE YOU
WITH US.
WITH US. THERE DIDN’T SEEM TO BE A
DIFFERENT TONE TODAY IN
WASHINGTON AS IT’S BECOMING
CLEARER WHAT THE NATION WILL
LIKELY FACE.
LIKELY FACE. OFFICIALS SEEM TO BE A LITTLE
BIT MORE --
[INAUDIBLE]
[INAUDIBLE] THAN THEY HAD BEEN.
IS THERE REALLY A CHANGE HERE?
>> I DON’T KNOW THAT I’D CALL IT
A CHANGE, I’D SAY THE MESSAGE
REMAINS TRANSPARENT BUT ONE OF
CONFIDENCE.
CONFIDENCE. WHAT WE’RE SAYING IS WHAT WE’VE
BEEN SAYING --
LOU: WHY NOT THEN CALL IT A
PANDEMIC?
PANDEMIC? BECAUSE YOU KNOW VERY WELL IT
IS.
IS. >> WELL, IN FACT, I SPOKE TODAY
WITH THE HEAD OF THE WORLD
HEALTH ORGANIZATION, AND I’LL
GIVE YOU SOME INSIGHT INTO THEIR
THINKING FINISH.
THINKING FINISH. LOU: I’M NOTED -- NOT INTERESTED
IN THEIR THINKING, TO BE CANDID
WITH YOU.
WITH YOU. YOU’RE CENTER FOR YOUR
DEPARTMENT, THE NIH AND THE CDC
ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR THE PUBLIC’S
HEALTH.
HEALTH. I’M FLIGHTED TO SPEAK TO YOU --
DELIGHTED TO SPEAK TO YOU, SIR.
>> WELL, LOU, WITHIN THE UNITED
STATES WHETHER YOU CALL IT A
PANDEMIC OR YOU DON’T CALL IT A
PANDEMIC IS IRRELEVANT.
IT DOESN’T CHANGE ONE SINGLE
ACTION THAT WE WOULD TAKE HERE
IN THE UNITED STATES.
NOT ONE, LOU.
JUST DOESN’T MATTER.
LOU: WHY NOT CALL IT THAT AND BE
JUST AS STRAIGHTFORWARD --
>> LOU, WHAT DOES IT ADD?
WHAT DOES IT ADD?
LOU YOU TELL ME, WHAT DOES IT
SUBTRACT IF YOU DON’T?
>> WE’RE TRYING TO ENGAGE IN
CAREFUL, THOUGHTFUL RISK
COMMUNICATION TO PEOPLE, AND
THAT MEANS AS AMERICANS, AND
THAT COULD CHANGE.
IT HASN’T CHANGED BECAUSE THE
PRESIDENT’S BOLD, UNPRECEDENTED
ACTIONS TO PROTECT OUR BORDERS
AND --
AND -- LOU: ABSOLUTELY.
LOU: ABSOLUTELY. >> BUT WE ARE NOW SEEING SOME
LIMITED COMMUNITY SPREAD, IT
APPEARS.
APPEARS. WE’VE SEEN SOME LIMITED
PERSON-TO-PERSON TRANSMISSION OF
THE DISEASE, AND ABSOLUTELY
WHILE WE’RE ON THE AIR RIGHT
NOW, LOU, WE’VE MADE AN
IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT OUT OF
THE FDA AND THE CDC THAT SHOULD
DRAMATICALLY INCREASE THE
AVAILABILITY OF OUR N-95
RESPIRATOR MASKS FOR USE BY
HEALTH CARE PROFESSIONALS IN THE
UNITED STATES.
UNITED STATES. SO WE’RE MAKING ADVANCES --
LOU: THAT’S GREAT.
THAT IS WONDERFUL.
AND AT THE SAME TIME, DO WE HAVE
TESTS THAT ARE NOW AVAILABLE
HERE IN THIS COUNTRY?
>> YES --
>> YES -- LOU: -- TO THE DEGREE THAT WE
NEED THEM?
NEED THEM? BECAUSE THE RATIO, AS I SEE IT,
THERE’S A BETTER RATIO OF
TESTING FOR THE CORONAVIRUS IN
OTHER COUNTRIES THAN WE MAINTAIN
HERE.
HERE. WE’RE ACTUALLY SCREENING FEWER
PEOPLE BECAUSE WE DON’T HAVE
APPROPRIATE TESTING.
APPROPRIATE TESTING. >> WELL, LOU, WE ACTUALLY HAVE A
VALIDATED TEST.
VALIDATED TEST. THE CDC HAS HAD IT, THERE’S BEEN
NO BACKLOG SINCE WE’VE HAD THAT
UP AND RUNNING.
IT’S OUT IN LABS.
WE’VE BEEN INCREASING THE
AVAILABILITY OF IT.
WE INSIST ON A VALID TEST.
YOU KNOW, IN OTHER COUNTRIES
THEY DON’T HAVE THE, THEY DON’T
HAVE THE SAME REGULATORY
REQUIREMENTS FOR VALIDATION, AND
SO IN OTHER COUNTRIES BASICALLY
A HOSPITAL OR A LAB CAN JUST
TAKE THE RECIPE --
LOU: I UNDERSTAND,
MR. SECRETARY, BUT THEN I DON’T
UNDERSTAND WHY AT THE SAME TIME
WE ARE SEEING COMMUNITY SPREAD
AND WE KNOW VERY WELL THAT THERE
HAVE NOT BEEN TEST KITS
AVAILABLE THAT DIDN’T WORK AND,
IN FACT, THE CDC HAD TEST KITS
BUT THEY WERE UNWORKABLE.
>> ACTUALLY, LOU, THE TESTS
WORKED.
WORKED. THE TESTS WORK, THEY ARE
VALIDATED.
VALIDATED. WHAT HAPPENED WAS THERE WERE
SOME MANUFACTURING ISSUES,
APPARENTLY, IN ONE STAGE OF THE
TEST, AND SOME LABS WERE NOT
ABLE TO VALIDATE IT.
WE SOLVED THAT ISSUE.
WE’VE GOTTEN THE --
LOU: SO THEY WERE --
[INAUDIBLE CONVERSATIONS]
[INAUDIBLE CONVERSATIONS] I DON’T WANT TO PLAY GAMES WITH
YOU, AND I’M SURE YOU DON’T WANT
WITH ME, BUT WHEN YOU USE WORDS
LIKE VALIDATED AND THEN SAY ONE
SEGMENT OF THEIR USE WAS
INVALIDATED BY PROBLEMS, YOU
KNOW, IT JUST -- THIS IS NOT
TRANSPARENCY --
TRANSPARENCY -- >> WELL, LOU, YOU DON’T WANT TO
HEAR IT, BUT WE’VE BEEN
TRANSPARENT AT EVERY STEP OF THE
WAY.
WAY. THERE ARE THREE STAGES TO THIS
TEST THAT THE CDC DEVELOPED.
THE FIRST TWO TESTS FOR THE
NOVEL CORONAVIRUS, THE THIRD WAS
FOR A FORM OF ANY FORM -- ANY
FORM OF CORONAVIRUS THAT WASN’T
NECESSARY.
NECESSARY. THE FDA CONCLUDED A WEEK AGO
THAT WASN’T NECESSARY, THE THIRD
STEP, THAT IT WAS OVERKILL ON
THE TEST.
THE TEST. THEY AUTHORIZED THE FIRST TWO
STAGES TO BE USED TO TEST, THAT
ENABLED --
ENABLED -- LOU: WHEN DID THEY DO THAT,
MR. SECRETARY?
MR. SECRETARY? >> NOW TENS OF THOUSANDS OF
TESTS OUT THERE --
[INAUDIBLE CONVERSATIONS]
[INAUDIBLE CONVERSATIONS] >> REGULATORY REQUIREMENTS TO
NOW ALLOW US TO GET RID OF AN
OBAMA-ERA BURDEN ON LABS TO
ALLOW ANY CERTIFIED CLINICAL LAB
OUT THERE TO DEVELOP A TEST
BASED ON THE RECIPE THAT WE HAVE
PRODUCED.
PRODUCED. THAT SHOULD OPEN UP HUNDREDS AND
HUNDREDS AND HUNDREDS IF NOT
MILLIONS PER WEEK OF TESTS
AVAILABLE, LOU.
AVAILABLE, LOU. LOU: YOU’RE MAKING MORE TESTS
AVAILABLE?
AVAILABLE? >> YES, ABSOLUTELY.
OF HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS AND
MILLIONS PER WEEK WILL BE ARE
AVAILABLE AS A RESULT OF THE
REGULATORY RELIEF THAT WE
GRANTED ON SATURDAY MORNING OUT
OF THE FDA, RELIEF FROM AN
OBAMA-ERA FDA REQUIREMENT THAT
REQUIRED ANY LAB-DEVELOPED TEST
BE APPROVED BY THE FDA.
WE SAID IN THIS EMERGENCY
SITUATION, WE ARE AUTHORIZING
THOSE CERTIFIED LABS TO CREATE
THEIR OWN ON TEST BASED ON THE
RECIPE THAT WE HAVE PUBLISHED --
LOU: YOU HAD PLENTY -- I’M
SORRY --
SORRY -- >> TESTING IMMEDIATELY.
LOU: MR. SECRETARY, I APOLOGIZE.
I APOLOGIZE, BUT, FRANKLY,
YOU’VE JUST SAID THAT YOU HAD
PLENTY, AND NOW YOU’RE
ACKNOWLEDGING THAT YOU DIDN’T.
I DON’T WANT TO GET BOGGED DOWN
IN THIS, I MEAN, I REALLY DON’T,
BUT I DO WANT TO UNDERSTAND HOW
BAD IS THIS GOING TO GET.
ARE WE GOING TO BE TALKING ABOUT
IT -- WHAT IS THE PLANNING AND
THE THINKING OF THE CORONA TASK
FORCE FOR THE AMERICANS WHO ARE
WATCHING THIS BROADCAST WHO ARE
ALL ADULTS AND WHO WANT TO KNOW
THE FACTS?
THE FACTS? HARD-BOILED, STRAIGHTFORWARD, NO
SUGAR-COATING AND NO PEDANTICS?
>> LOU, WE’RE PLANNING FOR ALL
SCENARIOS.
SCENARIOS. RIGHT NOW WE’VE GOT A FAIRLY
LIMITED SCENARIO, BUT WE’VE
PLANNED FOR THE FULL RANGE.
RIGHT NOW WE’RE WORKING WITH
SANTA CLARA COUNTY AND KING
COUNTY IN THE STATE OF
WASHINGTON ON COMMUNITY
MITIGATION RECOMMENDATIONS, AND
THAT’S THE APPROPRIATE STEP TO
TAKE.
TAKE. BUT YOU CAN GO ALL THE WAY FROM
COMMUNITY TO LARGE COMMUNITY TO
NATIONAL MITIGATION STEPS, AND
WE’LL TAKE ALL MEASURES NEEDED
TO PROTECT THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
BUT WE DON’T NEED TO DO IT UNTIL
THEY’RE NECESSARY, AND THAT’S --
THE PRESIDENT HAS TAKEN
UNPRECEDENTED ACTION.
UNPRECEDENTED ACTION. YOU KNOW, THESE TRAVEL
RESTRICTIONS THAT HE TOOK ON
CHINA, PEOPLE COMPLAINED ABOUT
THEM AT THE TIME.
BUT THEY PROTECTED AMERICA.
THEY DELAYED THIS IMPACT HERE IN
THE UNITED STATES SIGNIFICANTLY,
AND NOW EVERYBODY’S PRAISING HIM
FOR THOSE MEASURES, AND WE’LL
CONTINUE TO TAKE BOLD,
AGGRESSIVE ACTIONS.
AGGRESSIVE ACTIONS. HE WON’T HESITATE.
WE’D RATHER OVERREACT THAN
UNDERREACT TO THIS SITUATION IS.
LOU: I AM NOT TALKING ABOUT
STEPS THE PRESIDENT HAS TAKEN,
WHICH I HAPPEN TO AGREE WITH
YOU, WERE WITH THE FORESIGHT AND
WERE THE EXACT NECESSARY STEP TO
TAKE.
TAKE. YOU KNOW, AS A MATTER OF FACT,
I’LL GO FURTHER, YOU KNOW, THIS
PRESIDENT WAS LOOKING IN 2017 AT
THE DEPENDENCY OF THIS COUNTRY
ON OFFSHORING AND -- ACROSS THE
COUNTRY, THE ENTIRE WORLD,
FRANKLY, THE DEPENDENCY ON
SOUTHEAST ASIA AND CHINA FOR
SUPPLY CHAINS.
SUPPLY CHAINS. AND HE WAS TALKING ABOUT IT
THREE YEARS AGO.
SO I’M KEENLY AWARE OF HIS
THINKING ON THIS.
AND THE REALITY IS I’M TALKING
ABOUT THE PUBLIC’S RIGHT TO KNOW
HERE.
HERE. AND THAT’S QUITE A DIFFERENT
THING.
THING. >> ABSOLUTELY.
>> ABSOLUTELY. LOU: I HAVE ABSOLUTE FAITH IN
THE LEADERSHIP.
THE LEADERSHIP. MY CONCERN IS HOW MUCH THE
AMERICAN PEOPLE ARE BEING TOLD
THAT THEY NEED TO KNOW, AND THAT
IS, I THINK, EVERYTHING.
>> SO, LOU, THEY’RE BEING --
THEY HAVE BEEN --
LOU: LET ME PUT IT THIS WAY --
>> IN FACT, WE JUST IN 2017
UPDATED WHAT’S CALLED THE
PANDEMIC ACTION PLAN.
THAT’S A PUBLIC DOCUMENT THAT
GOES THROUGH HOW ONE DEALS WITH
A PANDEMIC --
LOU: WAIT A MINUTE, DID YOU SAY
PANDEMIC?
PANDEMIC? >> THAT IS WHAT WE PREPARE FOR,
PANDEMIC STATUS OF THIS --
LOU: DO WE HAVE ONE?
>> FROM ACTIVE CONTAINMENT,
THROUGH COMMUNITY MITIGATION,
LARGE SCALE COMMUNITY
MITIGATION.
MITIGATION. ALL THOSE STEPS, LOU, EVERYTHING
IS LAID OUT VERY TRANSPARENTLY
ABOUT WHAT THE GOVERNMENT WOULD
RECOMMEND.
RECOMMEND. ALSO OUR STATES HAVE, THANKS TO
THE WORK THAT I DID WITH
PRESIDENT BUSH BACK IN THE
2000s FOR PANDEMIC FLU
PREPAREDNESS, EVERY STATE HAS
PANDEMIC PLANS THAT WE EXERCISE,
THAT INTEGRATE INTO A NATIONAL
PANDEMIC ACTION PLAN.
AS THIS DISEASE PROGRESSES, AND
WE HOPE IT WILL NOT, BUT AS IT
PROGRESSES, WE WILL SEE A
CONTINUED EDUCATION CALCULATION
OF DIFFERENT TYPES -- ESCALATION
OF DIFFERENT TYPES OF STEPS, AND
WE’RE GOING TO MODIFY THOSE --
LOU: WHAT ARE YOU PROJECTING
WILL BE THE NUMBER OF CASES IN
THIS COUNTRY OVER THE NEXT WEEK?
>> LOU, I COULDN’T POSSIBLY
PREDICT WHAT THE NUMBER OF CASES
OVER THE NEXT WEEK WILL BE.
ALL I CAN TELL YOU IS WE ARE
GOING TO SEE MORE CASES AND,
UNFORTUNATELY, WE SAW NEW
FATALITIES THIS MORNING, AND I
FEAR WE WILL, WE’LL CONTINUE TO
SEE MORE.
SEE MORE. THERE’LL BE AN INCREASE.
BUT ONE CAN’T PREDICT THE NUMBER
OF CASES WE’RE GOING TO SEE.
NO CUP’S BEEN ABLE TO -- NO
ONE’S BEEN ABLE TO PREDICT ANY
CASES.
CASES. I WISH I COULD, I WISH I COULD,
BUT YOU CAN’T DO THAT.
LOU: OKAY.
LOU: OKAY. WELL, WITH THAT, WHAT DO YOU
THINK IS THE MOST IMPORTANT
THING FOR THE AMERICAN PEOPLE TO
KNOW ABOUT THIS PANDEMIC?
>> IN SPITE OF HOW YOU’VE BEEN
DESCRIBING IT, LOU, FOR EVERYDAY
AMERICANS RIGHT NOW THIS
SHOULDN’T IMPACT THEIR DAILY
LIVES.
LIVES. THEY SHOULD GO ABOUT NORMAL --
LOU: HOW DID I DESCRIBE IT?
I MISSED THAT PART.
HOW DID I DESCRIBE IT?
>> YOU’RE -- I THINK YOU’RE JUST
TRYING TO WHIP PEOPLE UP INTO A
FRENZY HERE, LOU --
LOU: ABOUT WHAT?
>> I’M TRYING TO GET PEOPLE TO
UNDERSTAND THE GOVERNMENT HAS A
PLAN, WE HAVE STEPS, WE EXERCISE
THIS.
THIS. BUT IN THEIR DAILY LIFE AT THIS
POINT, AND THAT COULD CHANGE, AT
THIS POINT THERE ISN’T A CHANGE
IN PEOPLE’S DAILY EXISTENCE
EXCEPT FOR NORMAL GOOD
PREPAREDNESS ACTIVITIES, THE
SAME STUFF WE WOULD HAVE
RECOMMENDED SIX MONTHS AGO.
GO TO CDC.GOV FOR
RECOMMENDATIONS OF WHAT YOU
SHOULD HAVE BEEN DOING ALL ALONG
AND THE KINDS OF STEPS YOU
SHOULD TAKE NOW.
WE’RE WORKING WITH YOUR
COMMUNITIES ON DIFFERENT
MITIGATION APPROACHES TO PLAN
FOR, WE HAVE A PLAN, TO EXERCISE
WHAT THEY WOULD DO.
HOW DO YOU, FOR INSTANCE, IF YOU
HAVE A COMMUNITY OUTBREAK IN AN
AREA, DO YOU CLOSE A SCHOOL?
MAYBE THERE’S SOME GOOD
MITIGATION STEPS THERE LIKE YOU
DON’T JUST HAVE SESSIONS IN THE
AUDITORIUM OR LARGE SCALE
RECESSES WHERE THE KIDS
CONGREGATE.
CONGREGATE. THESE ARE SOME LEARNINGS WE’VE
GOTTEN THROUGH HONG KONG AND
SINGAPORE, AND WE’RE USING THEM
AS WE WORK WITH SANTA CLARA
COUNTY AND KING COUNTY OUT IN
THE SEATTLE AREA TO HELP ADVISE
THEM AS THEY WORK ON THE
COMMUNITY CONTAINMENT THAT
THEY’RE FACING NOW.
LOU
LOU MR. SECRETARY, WE APPRECIATE
YOUR TIME.
YOUR TIME. I PROMISE NOT TO WHIP ANYBODY
INTO ANYTHING, YOU KNOW,
CONCERNED ABOUT THE -- WELL, THE
BODY OF PUBLIC KNOWLEDGE IN A
FREE SOCIETY M I, YOU KNOW, GOD