(Headline USA) The nation’s top infectious disease expert doesn’t want the Super Bowl to turn into a super spreader.
Dr. Anthony Fauci, says when it comes to Super Bowl parties during the pandemic, people should “just lay low and cool it.”
He said during TV interviews Wednesday that now isn’t the time to invite people over for watch parties because of the possibility that they’re infected with the coronavirus and could sicken others.
Big events like Sunday’s game in Tampa, Florida, between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are always a cause for concern over the potential for virus spread, Fauci said.
“You don’t want parties with people that you haven’t had much contact with,” he told NBC’s “Today” show. “You just don’t know if they’re infected, so, as difficult as that is, at least this time around, just lay low and cool it.”
Fauci has come under criticism for his flip-flopping advice on several issues related to the coronavirus, including earlier this week when he reversed his position on the merits of double-masking.
He also acknowledged in December that his earlier prediction that 60-70% of Americans would need the coronavirus vaccine for the U.S. to reach herd immunity was off by a wide margin.
That number is actually closer to 90%, Fauci argued, noting that he didn’t want to say as much at the beginning because the country wasn’t yet “ready to hear what he really thinks.”
The NFL has capped Super Bowl attendance at 22,000 people because of the pandemic and citywide coronavirus mandates.
Adapted from reporting by Associated Press.
