Beautiful Virgin Islands

Tuesday, Jun 24, 2025

christmas thanksgiving anthony fauci

Fauci says Christmas, New Year won't be "any different" from Thanksgiving if coronavirus case surge continues

Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation's top infectious disease expert, didn't see his daughters at Thanksgiving and said he likely won't be celebrating in-person with them at Christmas, either.
Millions of Americans altered their Thanksgiving plans because of the new coronavirus pandemic and Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, foresees the same being true for Christmas and the New Year.

America still leads in cases of COVID-19 and officials across the country urged people to refrain from gathering for Thanksgiving in an effort to combat further spikes. While vaccines are on the horizon it's likely to be months before they're widely distributed, and Fauci warned that without a significant drop in cases, Christmas and New Year's are likely to look similar to Thanksgiving.

"If the surge takes a turn of continuing to go up and you have the sustained greater than 100,000 infections a day and 1,300 deaths per day and the count keeps going up and up ... I don't see it being any different during the Christmas and New Year's holidays than during Thanksgiving," Fauci told USA Today.

Despite warnings from officials to stay home and only celebrate Thanksgiving among those within a household, millions of people traveled through TSA checkpoints in the days leading up to the holiday. On Friday, a million people passed through TSA checkpoints in one day, the first time since mid-March.

However, the pandemic likely had millions of others changing their plans, as air travel was significantly down from the same time last year. From Monday through Wednesday, 2,900,411 people passed through TSA checkpoints, compared to 7,313,608 that traveled in the three days leading up to Thanksgiving in 2019.

The Wednesday before Thanksgiving is known to be among the busiest travel days of the entire year and as far as plane travel in the COVID-era is concerned, it held up to its claim to fame. With more than 1,070,967 people traveling by plane, it was the highest number to pass through TSA checkpoints since March 16. Although a record high for air travel during the pandemic, it was a decrease of about 60 percent from the same day last year, according to TSA data.

Fauci was among those who changed his Thanksgiving plans to help slow the spread of the virus, opting for a dinner with his wife and a zoom call with his three daughters instead of an in-person celebration. He told USA Today part of the problem with holiday celebrations is that they're often held indoors with people singing, laughing, eating and drinking. So, this year, he'll likely cancel his usual Christmas plans, as well.

"For my own family, I'm saying we had a really great Thanksgiving and Christmas last year. We're looking forward to a really great Thanksgiving and Christmas in 2021," he said. "Let's now make the best of the situation and show our love and affection for people by keeping them safe."
Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
Germany and Italy Under Pressure to Repatriate $245bn of Gold from US Vaults
Airlines Evaluate Flight Cancellations Amid Escalating US-Iran Tensions
Starmer Invites Innovators to Join Government Talent Scheme
UK Economy’s Strong Opening Quarter Shows Signs of Cooling
Harrods Seeks Court Order to Secure Al Fayed Estate for Victims
BA and Singapore Airlines Cancel Dubai Flights Amid Middle East Tensions
Trump Faces Backlash from MAGA Base Over Iran Strikes
Meta Bets $14 B on Alexandr Wang to Drive AI Ambitions
WATCH: Israeli forces show the aftermath of a massive airstrike at Iran's Isfahan nuclear site
FedEx Founder Fred Smith, ‘Heart and Soul’ of the Company, Dies at 80
Chinese Factories Shift Away from U.S. Amid Trump‑Era Tariffs
Pimco Seizes Opportunity in Japan’s Dislocated Bond Market
Labubu Doll Drives Pop Mart to Status as China’s Most Valuable Toy Maker
Global Coal Demand Defies Paris Accord Goals
We have new information and breaking details to share about what is shaping up to be a historic air campaign tonight
Six Massive Bombs Dropped on Fordow; Trump: 'A Historic Moment for the U.S., Israel, and the World'
Fordow: Deeply Buried Iranian Enrichment Site in U.S.–Israel Crosshairs
United States Conducts Precision Strikes on Iran’s Nuclear Sites
US strikes Iran nuclear sites, Trump says
Pakistan to nominate Trump for Nobel Peace Prize.
BBC Demands Perplexity AI Immediately Stop Using Its Content
Telegram Founder: I Will Leave My Fortune to Over 100 of My Children
Political Turmoil Resurfaces in Belgium Amid Economic Concerns
Fed policymakers divided on timing of interest rate cuts
Trump signals imminent agreement with Harvard University
Inheritance tax referendum alarms Swiss billionaire community
Japan cancels bilateral security meeting amid US defence demands
AI skeptic Emily Bender warns that ‘the emperor has no clothes’
Israel Confirms Assassination of Quds Force Commander in Tehran
16 Billion Login Credentials Leaked in Unprecedented Cybersecurity Breach
Senate hearing on who was 'really running' Biden White House kicks off
Iranian Military Officers Reportedly Seek Contact with Reza Pahlavi, Signal Intent to Defect
FBI and Senate Investigate Allegations of Chinese Plot to Influence the 2020 Election in Biden’s Favor Using Fake U.S. Driver’s Licenses
Vietnam Emerges as Luxury Yacht Destination for Ultra‑Rich
Plans to Sell Dutch Embassy in Bangkok Face Local Opposition
China's Iranian Oil Imports Face Disruption Amid Escalating Middle East Tensions
Trump's $5 Million 'Trump Card' Visa Program Draws Nearly 70,000 Applicants
DGCA Finds No Major Safety Concerns in Air India's Boeing 787 Fleet
Airlines Reroute Flights Amid Expanding Middle East Conflict Zones
Elon Musk's xAI Seeks $9.3 Billion in Funding Amid AI Expansion
Trump Demands Iran's Unconditional Surrender Amid Escalating Conflict
Israeli Airstrike Targets Iranian State TV in Central Tehran
President Trump is leaving the G7 summit early and has ordered the National Security Council to the Situation Room
Taiwan Imposes Export Ban on Chips to Huawei and SMIC
Israel has just announced plans to strike Tehran again, and in response, Trump has urged people to evacuate
Netanyahu Signals Potential Regime Change in Iran
Juncker Criticizes EU Inaction on Trump Tariffs
EU Proposes Ban on New Russian Gas Contracts
Analysts Warn Iran May Resort to Unconventional Warfare
Iranian Regime Faces Existential Threat Amid Conflict
×