'Quite troubling': Fauci warns of possible surge in COVID-19 cases after holiday season

As COVID-19 cases, hospitalisation, deaths increase across the United States, public health officials have issued a warning against a possible surge after the holiday season. US infectious disease expert Dr. Anthony Fauci, during an interview with CNN, said that he and his colleagues are worried about a post-seasonal surge after the Christmas and New Year holidays. Fauci has described it as a "surge upon a surge" because of the incline the country has seen since late fall and early winter. 

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Fauci said that it is very troubling, adding that the United States is at a very "critical point" right now. Fauci added that he now shares the concern of President-elect Joe Biden that the situation in the country might get worse in the coming weeks. The public health officials are particularly worried because of the rise in travel in the past few days. According to the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), a record 1.2 million people travelled through airports across the United States, which is the highest footfall since March this year. 

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The United States remains the worst-affected country in the world with nearly 20 million people infected so far. According to data by the US government, more than 3,35,000 people have lost their lives due to COVID-19 disease. The cases in the country have been on a sharp rise since late-September. The country has recorded more than 1,00,000 new cases every day since the start of November, which is again a concerning factor for the health officials. 

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Tracking new strain of COVID-19

The health officials are also worried about the new strain of COVID-19 that has been discovered in the United Kingdom and has been since detected in few other nations. Health officials are continuously tracking the new strain of the virus and are taking precautions to prevent the variant from entering the country. Passengers arriving from the United Kingdom are required to show a negative COVID-19 result, which should have conducted no longer than 72 hours prior to boarding. 

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