Dr. Scott Gottlieb told CNBC on Friday that he believes governors are right to ease Covid’s restrictions on companies, as long as the mask policy remains in effect.
“Leaving the masks in place, since that’s the last thing we lift, I think that’s sensible,” said the former Food and Drug Administration commissioner of “Squawk Box.”
Gottlieb made his comments a day after Connecticut Democratic Governor Ned Lamont announced the restrictions will take effect this month. They include lifting capacity limits for restaurants, churches, hair salons and shops, among others from March 19. But Lamont will retain the mask mandate statewide. Texas and Mississippi – two states headed by Republican governors who recently moved on to end pandemic restrictions – are also scrapping their mask mandates.
Gottlieb said he thought Lamont’s approach was right, given the progress that has been made in vaccinations against Covid. Gottlieb, a Connecticut resident, was part of a pandemic advisory team for Lamont.
“I think this is the kind of thing we need to do across the country, at least give a map of where we’re going if the situation continues to improve without immediately taking our foot off the brakes,” said Gottlieb. who led the FDA in the Trump administration from 2017 to 2019.
The number of coronavirus cases in America has fallen sharply from their January peak, which coincided with the continued rollout of Covid vaccinations to a larger portion of the country’s population. At the same time, senior health officials have urged US residents to avoid complacency, warning that more contagious virus variants threaten to undermine the country’s progress.
“So much could change in the coming weeks,” said CDC director Dr. Rochelle Walensky this week. How this ends is up to us. The next three months are crucial. ‘
Dr. Anthony Fauci, the White House’s chief medical adviser, told CNN on Thursday that the rollback of restrictions was “inexplicable” at this point.
Gottlieb – a member of Pfizer’s board of directors that makes a Covid vaccine – said the emerging virus strains are important to watch out for states planning to relax restrictions. The B117 variant, first discovered in the UK, grows in Connecticut, Gottlieb said. “If the situation changes, they will probably reassess it.”
Lamont’s rollback of restrictions in Connecticut differs significantly from the moves of GOP Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, who declared his state “100% OPEN” in a tweet earlier this week.
In Connecticut, performing arts venues and movie theaters still have capacities of up to 50%. In addition, dining halls in restaurants will have to close by 11 p.m. ET.
Gottlieb said he would personally continue to avoid eating indoors, an attitude he has maintained throughout the pandemic. “I’ll definitely be going to restaurants during March, but I’m going to eat outside,” Gottlieb said. “It just doesn’t seem like a risk to me.”
At the same time, Gottlieb said the overall risk dynamics for Covid has changed significantly as a result of the introduction of the vaccine.
According to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, about 16% of the U.S. population has received at least one dose since Thursday. The Pfizer and Moderna vaccines require two doses, while the recently approved Johnson & Johnson vaccine is a single injection.
According to the CDC, about 21% of Connecticut residents have received at least one dose of vaccine.
“Connecticut has done much better than most states in getting vaccines to their elderly population,” added Gottlieb. “They’ve taken an age-based approach. They’ve done a very good job getting 65 and older vaccinated, so as the overall vulnerability of the population declines, you can lean forward a bit.” Age is one of the greatest risk factors for developing severe Covid and possible death.
“If we have 1,000 infections in the state now, that’s a lot different than 1,000 infections 10 months ago, when none of the vulnerable residents of the state were vaccinated,” Gottlieb said. “I think you should try to provide a path through which people can gradually return to normal work.”
Disclosure: Scott Gottlieb is a contributor to CNBC and serves on the boards of Pfizer, genetic testing start-up Tempus, health technology company Aetion and biotech company Illumina. He is also Co-Chair of the Healthy Sail Panel of Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings and Royal Caribbean.