EL SEGUNDO, Calif. — After 38 years as the leader of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Dr. Anthony Fauci announced he will be stepping down from his position in December.
Over the course of his career, Fauci advised seven presidents and, most recently, led America’s response to COVID-19.
“Inside the Issues” host Alex Cohen sat down with Fauci to discuss his decades-long career.
As his time as President Joe Biden’s chief medical adviser comes to a close, he said the U.S. still has a lot of work to do in the fight against the novel coronavirus as the pandemic continues.
“I am not comfortable with the idea of 300 to 400 deaths per day in this country, and that’s the reason why we’ve got to keep our foot on the pedal of this and push to get people vaccinated to get people boosted,” Fauci said.
Fauci added that the virus continues to circulate widely and harm those most vulnerable throughout the country. Despite COVID-19 restrictions easing across the country, he reminded Americans the pandemic is not over just yet.
“We can’t pull back and relax and not do the things that are important for us to continue to get this lower and lower and lower, so that it no longer disrupts our society.”
While COVID-19 funding has stalled in Congress, Fauci hopes more funding is approved to improve equity in vaccine availability and distribution. Currently, White House officials fear a lack of funding could lead to additional constraints in the fight against the virus as booster campaigns ramp up ahead of winter.
“Up to now, they have provided us with an extraordinary amount of resources that have had a major positive impact on how we have been able to address this pandemic, but we still need more resources,” Fauci said.
In his final months at NIAID, Fauci remains committed to reducing COVID-19 cases and the spread of monkeypox in the U.S.
Still, at 81 years old, he looks forward to leaving the post soon and devoting his expertise to a new career in medicine.
“I felt that I wanted to spend at least a few years while I am still energetic and passionate and healthy to do something outside of the realm of the federal government, where I could utilize the extraordinary and unique experience that I’ve had over the last almost 40 years.”
Let "Inside the Issues" know your thoughts and watch Monday through Friday at 8 and 11 p.m. on Spectrum News 1.