Dr. Anthony Fauci Wednesday urged Americans to "sacrifice" their plans for a large Thanksgiving gathering in hopes of slowing the growing spread of COVID-19, warning that if the country doesn't listen to his advice, it could see another large surge of infections as the year ends.
“Keep the indoor gatherings as small as you possibly can," Fauci, the nation's top infectious disease expert, said in an interview on ABC's "Good Morning America." "We all know how difficult that is because this is such a beautiful, traditional holiday."
Making the sacrifice now "could save lives and illness and make the future much brighter as we get through this," Fauci added.
The doctor's warning comes after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued guidance on Thanksgiving gatherings during the pandemic suggesting that families and friends keep their celebrations small and avoid traveling this season to minimize the spread of COVID-19.
The agency suggested that Americans instead give thanks by preparing and delivering cooked meals, contact-free, to family, friends, and neighbors who are at high risk from the disease, along with other activities.
Fauci said there is optimism ahead on the coronavirus, as there are now three vaccines showing high rates of effectiveness against the disease, but he's concerned that there are already people who are hesitant about taking a vaccine when it becomes available.
"It would really be terrible if we have, which we do, three now and maybe more highly efficacious vaccines and people don't take it," he added. "We could crush this outbreak exactly the way we did years ago with smallpox, with polio, and with measles. It is doable."