Dr. Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said that the number of deaths in the United States resulting from the coronavirus would be below his original projection of 100,000 to 200,000. Fauci said that forecast models updated with new data showed a positive effect, but he did not specify a new estimate.

Fauci said that the positive forecast was a sign to intensify mitigation efforts rather than scale them back. “We’re going to start to see the beginning of a turnaround, so we need to keep pushing on the mitigation strategies because there’s no doubt that that’s having a positive impact,” he said.

Fauci is a member of the White House Coronavirus Taskforce and he has served in his current professional role since 1984.

Federal government responses to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, 2020