WASHINGTON, DC - MARCH 13: In response to the ongoing global coronavirus pandemic, U.S. President Donald Trump announces that he is declaring a national emergency during news conference with National Institute Of Allergy And Infectious Diseases Director Anthony Fauci (2nd from L), Vice President Mike Pence and other members of his coronavirus task force and leaders from the healthcare industry in the Rose Garden at the White House March 13, 2020 in Washington, DC. (Photo: Getty)
Administration officials said on Tuesday that they were planning to wind down the coronavirus task force despite no evidence the virus is slowing down in the United States.
Vice President Mike Pence said the task force will probably wind down by the end of May. Other officials say the plan is still being discussed.
“It really is all a reflection of the tremendous progress we’ve made as a country,” Pence told reporters.
The vice president’s comments came after new evidence suggested that coronavirus deaths, which are now around 70,000, could double by August as states begin to lift restrictions. Despite cases in New York City declining, the hardest hit area in the country, cases across the country are rising.
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The task force did not meet on Saturday or Monday and President Donald Trump stopped linking news briefings to the task force’s meetings. These are all signs that the panel is beginning to wind down.
The task force has served as a check to the president during the pandemic, especially after he suggested Americans inject themselves with disinfectant to kill the virus and after he suggested the use of hydroxychloroquine to treat the coronavirus.
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