“We do have a lot of challenges in front of us with regard to the high level of daily infections. Yesterday being 54,974. When you are at that level, I don’t think you can declare victory and say you’ve turned the corner,” Fauci said.

Fauci and Dr. Rochelle Walensky, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, both expressed concern about the trajectory of the pandemic during a briefing with reporters, despite a vaccination program that has led to 84 million people in the United States getting one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine.