US Election: Experts Caution Against Large Rallies
Say it is ‘asking for trouble’
Trump tests negative for virus
WHO warns of likely spike
Top United States (US) health experts have warned that holding large rallies ahead on the November 3 election will be courting more COVID-19 trouble for Americans.
This is as President Donald Trump tested negative for COVID-19 and is no longer infectious to others, the White House physician said on Monday.
In a memo released by the White House ahead of Trump’s rally in Florida, Dr. Sean Conley said Trump had tested negative on consecutive days using an Abbott Laboratories BinaxNOW antigen card.
He said the negative tests and other clinical and laboratory data “indicate a lack of detectable viral replication.”
However, Conley did not specify how many consecutive days Trump had tested negative for the virus.
Meanwhile, top US infectious diseases expert, Dr Anthony Fauci told CNN, ahead of the Trump rally in Florida on Monday night that holding large rallies is “asking for trouble”.
Fauci also urged the Trump’s Campaign team to take down an advertisement that draws on a public statement he made, saying it is being used out of context.
The ad message, released last week, discusses Trump’s efforts to recover from COVID-19, as well as his administration’s work to address the Coronavirus pandemic.
The 30-second spot uses older remarks from Fauci in a way that suggests he was praising the President.
According to Fauci, the message being portrayed in the ad was “unfortunate and really disappointing”.
In another development, the World Health Organization (WHO) has warned that the number of new COVID cases is at its highest level since the start of the pandemic.
Speaking at the regular Monday press conference in Geneva, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the organisation’s director general, also called ideas of herd immunity “scientifically and ethically problematic”. – With The Guardian reports
