Al Jazeera interviewed Wafaa El-Sadr, MD, MPH, MPA, ICAP’s global director, for a May 7 article on the risks of loosening lockdowns while the COVID-19 pandemic continues.

Wafaa El-Sadr, professor of epidemiology at Columbia University, said easing curbs in some states while the US remained in the grip of the pandemic was a “risk and a gamble” as “epidemics don’t know borders”.

 

“A major Achilles heel for many states in the US is the availability of sufficient testing capability,” she said. “Another challenge is the urgent need for a large cadre of health workers poised to do the hard work of going out into communities to expand testing, do case and contract tracing.”

Read the full article on Al Jazeera

Read the latest ICAP updates on COVID-19 here