The U.S. may see an end to all pandemic restrictions, including mandatory mask-wearing, in the coming months, Anthony Fauci, MD, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, told the Financial Times Feb. 8.
He said he hopes that the end to these restrictions will come soon and explained that the response to the pandemic going forward will be concentrated at a local level.
"As we get out of the full-blown pandemic phase of COVID-19, which we are certainly heading out of, these decisions will increasingly be made on a local level rather than centrally decided or mandated. There will also be more people making their own decisions on how they want to deal with the virus," he told the FT.
The National Institute for Allergy and Infectious Diseases is preparing for the next pandemic by monitoring viruses that are known to cause severe illness.