据美国约翰斯•霍普金斯大学数据统计，截至北京时间7月1日16时20分，美国累计新冠肺炎确诊病例已超263万例，累计死亡病例近13万例。 值得注意的是，美国加利福尼亚州、得克萨斯州和亚利桑那州的新冠肺炎确诊病例不断增加，成为新冠肺炎大流行的新中心，尽快展开研发新冠肺炎疫苗临床试验的需求也显得更为迫切。 6月30日，美国国家过敏症和传染病研究所所长安东尼·福奇（Anthony Fauci）出席了国会参议院卫生、教育、劳工与养老金委员会关于新冠疫情的听证会。在国会听证会上，福奇对美国新冠肺炎死亡人数表示了不安并警告说，“数字本身就说明了一切，美国在应对新冠肺炎疫情方面走错了方向。” California, Texas and Arizona have emerged as new epicenters of the pandemic, each reporting record increases in COVID-19 cases, adding to pressure on scores of potential vaccines being rushed into trials New U.S. coronavirus cases could more than double to 100,000 per day if the current surge spirals further out of control, the government's top infectious disease expert warned on Tuesday, although he was "cautiously optimistic" a vaccine would be available early next year.
The Guardian 在国会听证会上，当福奇被问及美国新冠肺炎大流行是否得到控制以及疫情结束前美国还会有多少死亡病例和感染病例时, 他说"显然现在我们还没有完全控制疫情”，并且他无法做出准确的预测，如果目前的趋势持续下去，假如美国每天新增病例达到10万以上他都不会感到惊讶。 "Clearly we are not in total control right now," Dr. Anthony Fauci, head of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, told a U.S. Senate committee. "I am very concerned because it could get very bad." Fauci said the daily increase in new cases nationwide, currently around 40,000, could reach 100,000 unless a full nationwide effort was undertaken to tamp down the resurgent virus. 此外，福奇还敦促人们在公共场所一定要戴口罩和遵守社交隔离政策，当前美国已连续多天每日新增确诊病例数超过4万例，但很多情况下人们聚集也没有戴口罩，而且许多州没有遵守重新开放的准则，这样会使疫情变得更严重。他认为有必要更好地宣传关于防护重要性的信息。 同时，福奇建议不能仅仅关注那些疫情严重的地区，要全国共同致力于遏制疫情反弹。他解释说,“即使其他地区疫情防控的很好，它们也会有疫情暴发的风险，因为疫情会从一个地区蔓延到全国，这无疑会使整个国家置于危险之中。“ "We can't just focus on those areas that are having the surge. It puts the entire country at risk," he said. 对于新冠疫苗情况，虽然没有办法保证很快就会有防止感染的疫苗，但早期数据让科学家对于2021年会有疫苗感到“审慎乐观”，福奇希望明年年初就会有疫苗可用。 Fauci said there was no guarantee of having vaccine to prevent infection soon, but that early data had left scientists "cautiously optimistic" for 2021. "Hopefully there will be doses available by the beginning of next year," he said.