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June 23 (UPI) -- Dr. Anthony Fauci told a House panel Tuesday that he has never been asked to slow down testing for COVID-19 and again expressed hope that a vaccine will be ready by the end of 2020 or early 2021.
Asked about statements by President Donald Trump at a campaign rally Saturday that he had asked for a slowdown in testing, Fauci, director of the National Institute for Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said that neither he nor any other top U.S. health officials have been requested to do so.
"To my knowledge, none of us have ever been told to slow down on testing. That just is a fact," he told members the House energy and commerce committee. "In fact, we will be doing more testing."
The president drew criticism when he suggested spikes in coronavirus cases in several states were due to increased testing.
Other members of the White House Coronavirus Task Force -- including Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Stephen Hahn, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Robert Redfield and Health and Human Services Assistant Secretary Brett Giroir -- each answered "no" when similarly asked if they had been instructed to slow down COVID-19 testing.
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