Fauci says 'rolling reentry' of US economy possible in May

New cases of the coronavirus are certain to arise when restrictions imposed to limit the spread of the virus are eased, said Anthony Fauci, the top infectious disease expert for the US.

But Fauci said Sunday that the economy in parts of the country could have a "rolling reentry" as early as next month, provided health authorities can quickly identify and isolate people who will inevitably be infected.

Fauci also said he "can't guarantee" that it will be safe for Americans to vote in person on Election Day, November 3.

Rather than flipping a switch to reopen the entire country, Fauci said a gradual process will be required based on the status of the pandemic in various parts of the US and the availability of rapid, widespread testing.

Once the number of people who are seriously ill sharply declines, officials can begin to "think about a gradual reentry of some sort of normality, some rolling reentry", Fauci said.

In some places, he said, that might occur as soon as May.

"We are hoping that, at the end of the month, we could look around and say, OK, is there any element here that we can safely and cautiously start pulling back on? If so, do it. If not, then just continue to hunker down," Fauci said.

Whenever restrictions ease, Fauci said, "We know that there will be people who will be getting infected. I mean, that is just reality."
Because states don't really have the capability to deal with a big volume of new cases, he said, "By July or August we could be back in the same situation we are now."
When asked on CNN if earlier action on social distancing and "stay at home" policies could have saved lives, Fauci responded in part: "It's very difficult to go back and say that. I mean, obviously, you could logically say that if you had a process that was ongoing and you started mitigation earlier, you could have saved lives. Obviously, no one is going to deny that. But what goes into those kinds of decisions is complicated."