Fauci says states with coronavirus resurgences should consider shutting down again


States seeing surging COVID-19 cases "should seriously look at shutting down" again, Anthony Fauci, the Trump administration's top coronavirus official, said on a Wall Street Journal podcast Wednesday. "It's not for me to say, because each state is different," Fauci clarified.
That statement puts Fauci at odds with President Trump, who has pledged the U.S. will not shut down again even though coronavirus case counts are skyrocketing to new heights. A record 62,000 new cases were reported in the U.S. on Wednesday, bringing the total case count in the U.S. to 3 million. The national death toll has hit 132,000, per Johns Hopkins University numbers.
Dr. Ali Khan, the former director of the CDC's public health preparedness office, similarly told CNN that if states aren't doing what's necessary to "get this outbreak under control ... your only option is to shut down."
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.
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
Kathryn is a graduate of Syracuse University, with degrees in magazine journalism and information technology, along with hours to earn another degree after working at SU's independent paper The Daily Orange. She's currently recovering from a horse addiction while living in New York City, and likes to share her extremely dry sense of humor on Twitter.
-
Today's political cartoons - April 20, 2025
Cartoons Sunday's cartoons - Pam Bondi, retirement planning, and more
By The Week US
-
5 heavy-handed cartoons about ICE and deportation
Cartoons Artists take on international students, the Supreme Court, and more
By The Week US
-
Exploring the three great gardens of Japan
The Week Recommends Beautiful gardens are 'the stuff of Japanese landscape legends'
By The Week UK
-
Nobody seems surprised Wagner's Prigozhin died under suspicious circumstances
Speed Read
By Peter Weber, The Week US
-
Western mountain climbers allegedly left Pakistani porter to die on K2
Speed Read
By Justin Klawans
-
'Circular saw blades' divide controversial Rio Grande buoys installed by Texas governor
Speed Read
By Peter Weber
-
Los Angeles city workers stage 1-day walkout over labor conditions
Speed Read
By Justin Klawans
-
Mega Millions jackpot climbs to an estimated $1.55 billion
Speed Read
By Catherine Garcia
-
Bangladesh dealing with worst dengue fever outbreak on record
Speed Read
By Catherine Garcia
-
Glacial outburst flooding in Juneau destroys homes
Speed Read
By Catherine Garcia, The Week US
-
Scotland seeking 'monster hunters' to search for fabled Loch Ness creature
Speed Read
By Justin Klawans