Extract from ABC News
Top White House coronavirus adviser Anthony Fauci has praised Victoria's attitude towards mask-wearing, saying it has been "painful" to see the issue become politicised in the United States.
Key points:
- Dr Fauci said the vitriol towards mask-wearing in the United States in some cases was "extraordinary"
- The US might be in a better position if all states followed universal COVID-19 guidelines, he said
- Wearing face masks in the US has "almost become a political statement", he said
Dr Fauci, one of the United States' leading infectious diseases experts, said Australia and New Zealand were among countries that he believed had done "quite well" in tackling the pandemic.
He made the comments in a panel discussion with Doherty Institute director Sharon Lewin, hosted by the University of Melbourne's Dean of Medicine, Dentistry and Health Sciences Shitij Kapur.
"I would like to say the same for the United States, but the numbers speak for themselves," he said.
Dr Fauci said among the country's challenges were how states operated independently despite having a central government.
"Although there's many positives of independent states, when you're dealing with a pandemic and you say 'we need everyone to be doing A, B and C', and all of a sudden state 43 does this and state 27 does that, it becomes very difficult," he said.
He said the problem was particularly noticeable when the US tried to "open up the economy" recently.
Despite having recommendations for how to do that safely, Dr Fauci said the approach across the country was like an inconsistent "free for all" where some states skipped benchmarks or did not pay attention to health advice at all.
"Some states tried to do it well, but yet when you looked at the TV screen, you'd see people crowded at bars with no masks, just essentially causing super-spreading," he said.
"Even though we had the guidelines of universal wearing of masks, keeping distance, avoiding crowded and congregated settings, doing things outdoors more than indoors, and washing your hands.
"If everyone had done that uniformly, I don't think we would be in the position we're in right now."
Dr Fauci, a member of the United States coronavirus taskforce, has often been at odds with US President Donald Trump over how to best handle the pandemic.
Mr Trump recently described the renowned infectious diseases expert as a "disaster" and has ridiculed his Democratic opponent Joe Biden for wanting to "listen to Dr Fauci".
Divisiveness around mask-wearing 'painful to see', Dr Fauci says
Fellow panellist Professor Lewin said there were many reasons for Australia's success in tackling the pandemic.
Early international border closures, having a National Cabinet, early COVID-19 testing, a "robust" public health system and policy driven by science all contributed to Australia's relative success, she said.
But the infectious diseases expert also said the "individual individualism" in the United States was very different to Australia, and she pointed to Victoria's approach to fining people for not wearing a mask in public.
"If you walk on the streets of Melbourne, 99.9 per cent of people are wearing masks and we did it by fining people," Professor Lewin said.
"That, I gather, would be very difficult in the US."
Dr Fauci replied: "I really wish that we could transplant that kind of mentality here, because masks in the United States have almost become a political statement."
The vitriol towards mask-wearing in the United States in some cases was "extraordinary", he said.
"People were ridiculed for wearing masks, it depended on which side of a political spectrum you were at, which is so painful to me as a physician, a scientist and a public health person — to see such divisiveness centred around a public health issue," he said.
"If there's one area of life that there should not be divisiveness, it is in the health of your nation."
US has 'got to do better' on coronavirus
While Dr Fauci praised Australia's coronavirus response, he said being an island nation had helped it control incoming arrivals.
The United States has recorded more than 8.7 million infections and more than 225,000 coronavirus-related deaths since the pandemic began.
Dr Fauci said with winter and holidays such as Thanksgiving approaching, he was "really concerned" about the next few months.
Australia's COVID-19 health measures, such as social distancing and hand sanitising, drove down influenza infections and helped the country avoided hundreds of flu deaths this year.
"We're hoping we're as lucky as you are," Dr Fauci said.
Dr Fauci said he told a recent Senate hearing that if the United States did not do something differently, it could reach records of 100,000 infections per day.
"Days ago we were up to 83,000 cases in a single day. That is really troubling. We've got to do better than that," he said.
The full panel discussion is available on the University of Melbourne YouTube channel.
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