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During a CNN interview on Thursday night, Dec. 3 with Vice President-elect Kamala Harris - the pair's first joint interview since winning the election - Biden decreed that in an effort to curtail the further spread of COVID-19, he will be asking Americans to mask-up following his inauguration on Wednesday, Jan. 20.
“Just 100 days to mask, not forever; 100 days and I think we will see a significant reduction,” Biden said. “I think we'll see a significant reduction if we occur that, if that occurs with vaccinations and masking to drive down the numbers considerably."
Biden and Harris also both vowed to adhere to the CDC’s guidance regarding the importance of wearing facial coverings, unlike the current federal administration.
"I'm going to issue a standing order that in federal buildings you have to be masked,” he added. "Transportation, interstate transportation, you must be masked, airplanes and buses, etcetera."
Biden’s statement is a complete 180-degree turn from the current administration, which has mocked mask-wearing and held rallies and parties in violation of the federal government’s own COVID-19 guidance.
“President-elect Biden, and his leadership and listening to scientists, believe that if we all wore our masks for 100 days, we would have a significant reduction in the transmission of the virus," Rick Bright, a former Trump administration vaccine expert who resigned after his warnings about the spread of COVID-19 told CNN.
“The science shows that wearing a face mask reduces the spread. I think it would have a huge impact," Bright, who now sits on Biden's coronavirus advisory board, added.
It also comes shortly after Biden asked infectious disease expert Anthony Fauci - who has also been the subject of derision from President Donald Trump’s office - to continue in his current role as the nation’s top expert on the subject for his administration.
Fauci reportedly accepted the offer on the spot when asked by the President-elect.
Biden added: “I asked him to stay on the exact same role he's had for the past several presidents, and I asked him to be a chief medical adviser for me as well, and be part of the COVID team."
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