‘Full Blown’ Covid-19 Pandemic Phase Almost Over In The US: Dr. Anthony Fauci

Meanwhile, the global coronavirus caseload has reached 405,688,274, while the deaths have surged to 405,688,274, according to Johns Hopkins University.

The US will soon be out of the full-blown pandemic phase of Covid-19, but there is no way we are going to eradicate this virus, top infectious disease expert Dr. Anthony Fauci has said.

He believes that with a combination of vaccinations, treatments and previous infection, the virus would soon become more manageable in the country. He hopes to see an end to all COVID restrictions in the coming months, and local health departments taking the decisions, if outbreaks are detected in the community.

"As we get out of the full-blown pandemic phase of Covid-19, which we are certainly heading out of, these decisions will increasingly be made on a local level rather than centrally decided or mandated," Financial Times quoted Fauci as saying.

Fauci said his agency is monitoring viruses and families of viruses that are known to create severe illness, to prepare for the next pandemic. He noted that a mix of vaccines and therapeutics would be required to deal with future outbreaks.

Global Covid caseload

Meanwhile, the global coronavirus caseload has reached 405,688,274, while the deaths have surged to 405,688,274, according to Johns Hopkins University.

The total number of vaccine doses administered has increased to 10,143,832,034, as per the latest update from the University's Center for Systems Science and Engineering (CSSE).

The US has the world's highest number of cases and deaths at 77,437,114 and 915,349. In terms of cases, India is the second worst hit country with 42,478,060 infections and 506,520 deaths, followed by Brazil (27,135,550 infections and 636,338 deaths), according to the CSSE.

India reported 58,077 new Covid infections and a total 657 deaths in the last 24 hours, said the Union Health ministry on Friday morning. The previous day, the country had reported 67,084 new Covid cases.

Currently, India's weekly positivity rate stands at 5.76 per cent while daily positivity rate has fallen to 3.89 per cent.