Top US health expert expects schools to reopen by fall

By Beyza Binnur Donmez

ANKARA (AA) - A top U.S. infectious disease expert has said that he expects the country will be in "good shape" to reopen schools by fall.

Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, made the remarks Tuesday during the daily White House Coronavirus Task Force briefing when asked about the next school year.

"I fully expect, ..., by the time we get to the fall, that we will have this [coronavirus] under control enough that it certainly will not be the way it is now, where people are shutting schools," Fauci said.

"My optimistic side tells me that we'll be able to renew to a certain extent, but it's going to be different," he added. "Remember now because this is not going to disappear."

He stressed that by that time the U.S. has to have the capability of doing targeted approaches, such as identifying infected individuals who should self-isolate nationwide.

Emphasizing that all of these things are going to go into the decision of going back to normal, Fauci said: "The bottom line is, no absolute prediction, but I think we're going to be in good shape."

The schools have already been closed for the rest of the academic year across the U.S. to stem the spread of coronavirus.

The U.S. has the highest number of confirmed virus cases worldwide -- nearly 400,000, according to the data compiled by Johns Hopkins University in Maryland. Over 12,900 fatalities have been recorded, while more than 22,500 people recovered.

Overall, the virus has spread to 184 countries, infecting at least 1.43 million people since it first emerged in the Chinese city of Wuhan late last year.