TO SEND 150 NEW VENTILATORS TO HOT SPOTS IN MICHIGAN AND
MARYLAND.
MARYLAND. HODA?
HODA? >> GABE, THANK YOU.
JOINING US IS SCIENCE
CONTRIBUTOR DR. JOSEPH THAYER, A
NEUROLOGIST.
NEUROLOGIST. YOU HEARD THE PRESIDENT TALKING
THIS MORNING ABOUT REOPENING
PARTS OF THE COUNTRY BEFORE MAY
THE 1st.
THE 1st. IN YOUR PROFESSIONAL OPINION IS
THAT A WISE IDEA?
>> NO, FRANKLY, WHERE WE ARE
RIGHT NOW, YOU KNOW, WHEN WE
TALK ABOUT FLATTENING THE CURVE
WE’RE AT THE PLATEAU PART OF THE
CURVE.
CURVE. THE MOMENT WE RELAX SOCIAL
DISTANCING
DISTANCING DISTANCING GUIDELINES, THAT’S A
NEW PEAK.
NEW PEAK. RIGHT NOW FLATTENING THE CURVE,
WHAT WE ULTIMATELY WANT TO DO
BEFORE WE CONSIDER ANY
RELAXATION OF SOCIAL DISTANCING
MEASURES WOULD BE TO ACTUALLY
DECREASE THE CURVE AND SEE A
STEADY DECLINE IN THE CURVE.
>> SOMETHING OBVIOUSLY IMPORTANT
IS TESTING TO FIGURE WHO’S SICK,
WHO’S NOT SICK, WHO’S ALREADY
BEEN SICK, YOU NEED WIDESPREAD
TESTING.
TESTING. HOW CLOSE DO YOU THINK THIS
COUNTRY IS TO DOING THAT BECAUSE
THAT’S REALLY WHAT YOU NEED TO
DO BEFORE YOU CAN REOPEN THE
COUNTRY.
COUNTRY. >> TO BE FRANK TO WHERE WE
NEED -- I THINK -- TO GET TO
WHERE WE NEED TO BE WITH TESTING
I THINK IT’S GOING TO TAKE US
REALISTICALLY ANYWHERE FROM TWO
TO MAYBE SIX MONTHS.
THAT’S INCLUDING, YOU KNOW, TO
GET THE NASAL SWAB TEST OUT TO
LITERALLY
LITERALLY LITERALLY EVERYONE THAT NEEDS TO
HAVE IT, AS WELL AS THE ANTIBODY
TEST.
TEST. >> WE’RE A COUNTRY OF 330
MILLION.
MILLION. >> ABSOLUTELY.
>> ABSOLUTELY. >> I THINK 3 MILLION HAVE BEEN
TESTED.
TESTED. WHAT DO YOU THINK THE RIGHT
NUMBER OF PEOPLE THAT NEEDS TO
BE TESTED, LIKE WHAT’S THAT
NUMBER SO THAT WE CAN FEEL SAFE
GOING BACK TO WORK, GOING BACK
TO RESTAURANTS?
TO RESTAURANTS? >> I CAN’T GIVE AN EXACT NUMBER,
WE’D WANT TO TEST AT LEAST
ANYONE THAT’S GOING TO GO BACK
INTO A SITUATION AT WORK WHERE
THEY’RE GOING TO BE IN VERY
CLOSE PROXIMITY WITH OTHER
PEOPLE.
PEOPLE. THAT’S GOING TO BE ANY MAJOR
KIND OF OFFICE BUILDINGS, HERE
AT NBC, YOU KNOW KIND OF
SMITHFIELD PORK, ANYWHERE YOU’RE
GOING TO HAVE CLOSE AND INTIMATE
CONTACT WITH OTHERS AND NOT BE
ABLE TO AVOID THAT SOCIAL
DISTANCING.
DISTANCING. THAT BRINGS UP QUESTIONS, WHAT
ABOUT SCHOOLS?
ABOUT SCHOOLS? YOU CAN’T AVOID THAT IN SCHOOLS.
SO WE’RE GOING TO HAVE TO COME
UP WITH A PLAN FOR THAT.
>> I THINK PEOPLE’S PERSONAL
COMFORT.
COMFORT. EVEN IF BUSINESSES OPEN, YOU
KNOW, WOULD SOMEONE WANT TO SIT
AT A TABLE WHERE SIX FEET AWAY
SOMEONE ELSE IS SITTING AT A
TABLE AND COUGHING SO YOU REALLY
HAVE TO HAVE CONFIDENCE TO HAVE
PEOPLE GO BACK.
>> YEAH.
>> YEAH. YOU HAVE TO HAVE CONFIDENCE AND
I THINK WHAT WE’RE GOING TO SEE
IS A CHANGE IN HOW WE LIVE OUR
LIVES, POST COVID-19.
THIS IS -- I THINK DR. FAUCI
SAID IT’S NOT GOING TO BE A
LIGHT SWITCH.
LIGHT SWITCH. FOR A WHILE YOU’RE GOING TO GO
INTO RESTAURANTS AND SEAT HALF
OF THE NUMBER OF INDIVIDUALS
THEY WOULD SEAT.
THEY’RE GOING TO NEED TO
MAINTAIN SOCIAL DISTANCING IN
RESTAURANTS FOR SOME TIME TO
COME.
COME. GROCERY STORES YOU’RE GOING TO
SEE LANES -- A ROADWAY, THIS
LANE GOES THIS WAY AND THIS LANE
GOES THAT WAY AND I THINK WE’RE
GOING TO START SEEING SOME
CHANGES LIKE THAT TO OUR LIVES,
WE WOULDN’T HAVE EXPECTED THAT
PRE-COVID-19.
PRE-COVID-19. >> DO YOU THINK WE HAVE TO WAIT
FOR A VACCINE BEFORE WE’RE NO
LONGER SOCIAL DISTANCING.
LATE 2021 BEFORE WE CAN BE
CLOSER THAN SIX FEET AWAY FROM
SOMEBODY?
SOMEBODY? >> IT’S HARD TO SAY AT THIS
POINT IN TIME.
ONE OF TWO THINGS IS GOING TO
HAPPEN FIRST.
HAPPEN FIRST. WE’RE EITHER GOING TO DEVELOP
THIS HERD IMMUNITY THAT WE’VE
TALKED ABOUT, WHERE A GOOD
PERCENTAGE OF THE POPULATION HAS
HAD THE VIRUS AND RECOVERED FROM
IT AND HAS TEMPORARY IMMUNITY TO
IT OR THE VACCINE.
WE’LL END UP MEETING IN THE
MIDDLE SOMEWHERE.
MIDDLE SOMEWHERE. I THINK IT WAS THE MAYOR OF LOS
ANGELES THAT SAID HE REALLY HAD
TROUBLE SEEING ANY MASS
GATHERING EVENTS BEFORE 2021.
>> YEAH.
>> YEAH. >> TO BE HONEST I AGREE WITH
THAT ASSESSMENT.
THAT ASSESSMENT. IT’S BLEAK AND IT’S UNFORTUNATE,
BUT THIS VIRUS IS GOING TO BE
WITH US AT LEAST UNTIL THAT
TIME.
TIME. WE ARE NOT GOING TO HAVE A
VACCINE BEFORE THE END OF THE
YEAR, IN MY OPINION.
I HOPE I’M PROVEN WRONG ON THAT
BUT I DON’T THINK WE’RE GOING TO
HAVE A VACCINE AND READY FOR USE
IN HUMANS BY THE END OF THE
YEAR.
YEAR. WE CAN LOOK AT LEAST GOING INTO
2021 TO HAVE THESE MEASURES IN