Former FDA commissioner said northern states could see an increase in cases as infections “will likely start to collide with the opening of the school”

• A former FDA commissioner has warned that the school year could lead to an increase in COVID-19 cases, especially in northern states.

• Dr Scott Gottlieb said that “northern states are more impervious to the kind of spread we’ve seen in the south, but they are not completely impervious.”

• His comments come as the highly infectious Delta variant spreads across the United States.

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Former FDA commissioner Dr Scott Gottlieb said northern states could see an increase in COVID-19 cases as children return to school and parts of the United States see the number infections increase amid the spread of the Delta variant.

In an interview with CBS “Face the Nation” Host John Dickerson asked Gottlieb on Sunday for his thoughts on the current state of the pandemic, citing a recent poll that determined Americans believe the pandemic is getting worse.

“It’s definitely getting worse and worse,” Gottlieb said. “I think you’re going to start to see improvements, especially in the South. There is evidence that the growth rate of cases in the South is starting to decline.”

The Delta variant has been linked in recent weeks to an alarming wave of new infections in some states, including Florida, Louisiana, Arkansas and Missouri, which have been among the hardest hit throughout the summer.

“I think this week you might see some of the states that have been the epidemic states start to switch by showing fewer cases on a daily basis,” Gottlieb said. “The epidemic is clearly slowing down in states like Florida, Louisiana, Arkansas, Missouri, but at the same time, we are now seeing the virus spread to the northern states.”

Gottlieb said northern states like North Carolina, Indiana and Illinois are now experiencing an increase in the number of cases. For example, in North Carolina, the state reported more than 4,000 cases of COVID-19 on Friday and hospital beds are filling up, Raleigh News & Observer reported.

“I think the northern states are more impervious to the kind of spread we’ve seen in the south, but they’re not completely impervious,” Gottlieb added. “They have higher vaccination rates. There have been more previous infections. But there are still people who are vulnerable in these states. And the challenge right now is that the infection is going to start coming in. collision with the opening of the school. “

The story continues

As school begins in a few weeks, the risk of infections has raised concerns among health officials.

In an interview with ABC’s “This Week” on Sunday, National Institutes of Health director Dr Francis Collins said: “The largest number of children to date in the entire pandemic are currently in hospital , 1,450 children in COVID-19 hospital. “

To help curb the spread of the virus, new guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommend everyone in schools wear a face mask, even if they are fully vaccinated.

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