Fauci cautiously optimistic about Omicron variant severity
NIAID/NIH director Anthony Fauci said the threat from the omicron variant remained to be determined – but that signs were encouraging.
“Thus far it does not look like there’s a great degree of severity to it.”Dismissing as “preposterous” a Republican senator’s claim he is “overhyping” Covid-19 as he did HIV and Aids, Dr Anthony Fauci said on Sunday the threat to the US from the Omicron variant remained to be determined – but that signs were encouraging.
“Thus far – though it’s too early to really make any definitive statements about it – it does not look like there’s a great degree of severity to it,” Fauci told CNN’s State of the Union.
“But we have really got to be careful before we make any determinations that [Omicron] is less severe or it really doesn’t cause any severe illness comparable to Delta.”
Fauci’s evident caution stood at odds with the bizarre accusation made by the Wisconsin senator Ron Johnson, who told Fox News this week Fauci had overhyped Aids and created all kinds of fear. He said: “He’s using the exact same playbook for Covid.”
What did Fauci say about Johnson? “Overhyping Aids? It’s killed over 750,000 Americans and 36 million people worldwide. How do you overhype Covid? It’s already killed 780,000 Americans and over 5 million people worldwide. So, I don’t have any clue of what he’s talking about.”
How bad is the spread of Omicron? The variant has been detected in 15 US states. Fauci was cautiously optimistic current vaccines might work against it.
