At least two White House coronavirus experts on Sunday warned that the United States was in a new phase of the pandemic with “extraordinarily widespread” infections, reported Reuters. The US is the worst-hit country so far with over 46 lakh coronavirus cases as of Sunday.

The United States reported a record 18.7 lakh new cases in July, according to the Johns Hopkins University tracker. In June, the country had registered 8.2 lakh cases while in May the figure was 6.9 lakh. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has projected more than 1,73,000 deaths in America alone by August 22, according to CNN. As of Sunday, the toll in the US stands at over 1.5 lakh.

“We are in a new phase,” Dr Deborah Birx, the White House Covid-19 task force coordinator, said on CNN’s “State of the Union” show. “What we are seeing today is different from March and April. It is extraordinarily widespread. To everybody who lives in a rural area: You are not immune or protected from this virus.”

Birx stressed on the importance of wearing masks. She even advised people living in multi-generational households in an area experiencing outbreaks to wear masks inside the home.

Birx toured 14 states over the last three weeks. “As I travelled around the country, I saw all of America moving,” she added. “If you have chosen to go on vacation into a hot spot, you really need to come back and protect those with comorbidities and assume you’re infected.”

Admiral Brett Giroir, the assistant Health and Human Services secretary, echoed Birx. “If we don’t do that [wear mask], and if we don’t limit the indoor crowded spaces, the virus will continue to run,” he said on NBC’s “Meet the Press” show. “We are very concerned and this is a very serious point.” Giroir even went on to add that wearing masks and avoiding crowds were almost equivalent to a complete lockdown.

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