President Donald Trump said Sunday he would extend his social distancing guidelines to April 30 as novel coronavirus continues to spread throughout the US.
“The better you do, the faster this whole nightmare will end,” the President said at a White House news conference. “Therefore, we will be extending our guidelines to April 30th, to slow the spread. On Tuesday we will be finalizing these plans and providing a summary of our findings, supporting data and strategy to the American people.”
Trump said the death rate will likely rise in two weeks, but he hopes the country will be back to recovery by June 1. “We can expect that by June 1st, we will be well on our way to recovery, we think by June 1st. A lot of great things will be happening,” he said.
The White House’s guidance advises all Americans to avoid groups of more than 10 and urges older people to stay at home. Just a few week ago Trump said he was convinced the distancing restrictions were causing irreparable damage to the economy. He had hopes that the country would be back up and running by Easter. Trump was warned by health advisers of the consequence if Americans were allowed to return to large gatherings or crowded workplaces. Trump was adamant on allowing American citizens to return to normal life despite the advice from health advisors.