Fauci testifies on Capitol Hill

Health officials could have a COVID-19 vaccine by late this year or early next year, said Dr. Anthony Fauci, the government’s top infectious disease expert. Before a House committee on Tuesday, he and the other health officials testified that no one instructed them to limit testing for the virus. President Donald Trump had said health officials should slow down testing because they were turning up so many cases. Following suggestions that he was joking, he told reporters on Tuesday: “I don’t kid. Let me make it clear. We have the best testing program of anywhere in the world.”

What did Fauci say comes next? The next few weeks are critical as officials try to contain a recent rise in cases, he said. But he also told the committee he thinks the country can better respond now if a second wave of the virus hits in the fall. He cited the wider availability of protective and medical equipment and said health officials should be able to administer 40 million to 50 million tests a month by then.

Dig deeper: Read WORLD’s Saturday Series report on why New York’s outbreak proved so deadly among its elderly population.