Fauci says we're out of 'the pandemic phase' but might need to get vaccinated 'every year'


If you want a picture of the future, imagine a needle jabbing a human arm — forever.
White House medical adviser Dr. Anthony Fauci said Tuesday in an interview with PBS NewsHour that the United States is no longer in "the pandemic phase" of the COVID-19 virus but that Americans might need to be vaccinated "every year" in order to keep virus levels low.
"We are, certainly, right now, in this country, out of the pandemic phase. Namely, we don't have 900,000 new infections a day and tens and tens and tens of thousands of hospitalizations and thousands of deaths. We are at a low level right now," Fauci said.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
According to The New York Times, the U.S. is recording around 50,000 new COVID cases per day, down from a high of more than 800,000 during January's Omicron spike.
The seven-day average of deaths stands at 362 per day, down 32 percent over the past two weeks, while the number of cases — driven by the spread of the highly contagious BA.2 subvariant — is up 61 percent.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Grayson Quay was the weekend editor at TheWeek.com. His writing has also been published in National Review, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Modern Age, The American Conservative, The Spectator World, and other outlets. Grayson earned his M.A. from Georgetown University in 2019.
-
Today's political cartoons - April 16, 2025
Cartoons Wednesday's cartoons - Trump's medical exam, student loan debt, and more
By The Week US
-
Christian dramas are having a moment
Under The Radar Biblical stories are being retold as 'bingeable' seven-season shows
By Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK
-
Money dysmorphia: why people think they're poorer than they are
In The Spotlight Wealthy people and the young are more likely to have distorted perceptions
By Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK
-
RFK Jr. visits Texas as 2nd child dies from measles
Speed Read An outbreak of the vaccine-preventable disease continues to grow following a decade of no recorded US measles deaths
By Peter Weber, The Week US
-
Shingles vaccine cuts dementia risk, study finds
Speed Read Getting vaccinated appears to significantly reduce the chances of developing Alzheimer's and other forms of dementia
By Peter Weber, The Week US
-
Measles outbreak spreads, as does RFK Jr.'s influence
Speed Read The outbreak centered in Texas has grown to at least three states and Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is promoting unproven treatments
By Peter Weber, The Week US
-
Five years on: How Covid changed everything
Feature We seem to have collectively forgotten Covid’s horrors, but they have completely reshaped politics
By The Week US
-
RFK Jr. offers alternative remedies as measles spreads
Speed Read Health secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. makes unsupported claims about containing the spread as vaccine skepticism grows
By Peter Weber, The Week US
-
Texas outbreak brings 1st US measles death since 2015
Speed read The outbreak is concentrated in a 'close-knit, undervaccinated' Mennonite community in rural Gaines County
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US
-
Mystery illness spreading in Congo rapidly kills dozens
Speed Read The World Health Organization said 53 people have died in an outbreak that originated in a village where three children ate a bat carcass
By Peter Weber, The Week US
-
Ozempic can curb alcohol cravings, study finds
Speed read Weight loss drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy may also be helpful in limiting alcohol consumption
By Peter Weber, The Week US