Dr. Fauci: ‘I don’t think we’re going to eradicate COVID’

WASHINGTON (Gray DC) - Dr. Anthony Fauci says he sees a significant surge in new COVID cases in the next few weeks.

In an interview with the Gray Television Washington News Bureau Wednesday, Fauci said, “The somewhat encouraging news is that [omicron] appears, certainly from the South African experience and the UK experience, but we’re starting to see inklings of that here in the United States, that it looks like it might be less severe.”

Fauci said he believes we’ll get to a point where COVID can be “controlled” like a significant cold instead of something that’s life-threatening.

He said, “I don’t think we’re going to eradicate COVID. We may not even eliminate it. I think that would be aspirational.”

For now, Fauci says testing still plays a key role in trying to limit the spread, and so does knowing which test to take.

“If I feel like I’m ill, and I may have been exposed, I would want to get a PCR test,” Fauci explained. “If I want to do surveillance – like I’m going to dinner, and I’m vaccinated, and I want to be doubly certain that I’m not asymptomatically bringing infection into someone’s home, then that’s where you have an antigen test that’s of value.”

As for big New Year’s Eve parties with strangers, Fauci recommends to skip them.

On Monday, the Centers for Disease Control announced it is relaxing some of its guidance for isolation and quarantine for those who contract COVID.

CDC guidance calls for people who are COVID-positive to stay home for five days, regardless of vaccination status. They should then continue to wear a mask for another five days. A negative test is no longer recommended to end quarantine or isolation, if a person is asymptomatic and doesn’t have a fever.

Here is a breakdown of the latest guidance:

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