‘I’m afraid we are going numb’ to Covid numbers

Richard Besser, who was acting director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention under former President Barack Obama, said he was concerned people would cut Covid numbers as governors decide to reopen their states.

“In Texas, where they removed the mask warrant, less than 10% of people have been vaccinated and the levels are higher than levels last summer when they put the warrants in place,” Besser said. . “I’m afraid we are getting a little numb in the face of these numbers, and we don’t remember that every day in America more than 2,000 people still die from Covid.”

The governors of Texas and Mississippi announced Tuesday they were lifting mask warrants and allowing businesses to reopen at full capacity.

“Now is the time to open up Texas 100%,” said Republican Texas Gov. Greg Abbott.

Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont, a Democrat, announced Thursday that a number of businesses in his state would be allowed to reopen at full capacity starting March 19.

Besser told CNBC “The News with Shepard Smith” that states should follow the CDC’s lead and heed the concerns of Director Rochelle Walensky, who said she was still “deeply concerned” about the virus.

“Our recent declines appear to be stagnating – stagnating at over 70,000 cases per day,” Walensky said at a White House press briefing Monday. “With these new statistics, I am really concerned about reports that more and more states are reversing the exact public health measures we have recommended to protect people from Covid-19.”

Besser’s former agency is expected to release new guidelines for fully vaccinated people on Friday. He informed host Shepard Smith that people should manage their expectations.

“I don’t think they’re going to give the kind of wholesale green light that a lot of people are hoping for. It’s going to take even more of a downtrend, and it will take more people vaccinated than we currently have. country, ”Besser said.