On Sunday, Secretary of Health and Human Services Alex Azar appeared on CNN’s “State of the Union” with host Jake Tapper to discuss several issues pertaining to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
During the segment, Tapper asked Azar about the example President Trump sets by not wearing a face mask in public, citing Senator Lamar Alexander (R-TN), who previously stated that he wishes the president would wear a face covering.
“You talked about the importance of wearing masks. Don’t you think it undermines the message that you are trying to give, that the surgeon general is trying to give, the Drs. Birx and Fauci are trying to give, when President Trump not only refuses to wear a mask publicly, but he makes fun of people who wear masks, and also, he holds these rallies where no one, no one is social distancing, and no one is wearing a mask?” Tapper asked. “Doesn’t that undermine the message that you are trying to give?”
Azar replied that as HHS secretary, he is relaying the message from the Trump administration on how to safely reopen, including advising social distancing and wearing face masks when necessary.
“In the last several weeks, we have seen people engage in mass gatherings for any number of political and First Amendment reasons that are very important as part of our civic fabric,” Azar added. “And I’m not going to comment on those aspects.”
The HHS secretary then encouraged anyone who would engage in protests to “take appropriate precautions.”
After claiming that CNN has been advising protesters to social distance and wear masks, Tapper pressed Azar on President Trump’s rallies:
It seems that indoor activity is much more dangerous, potentially, and yet the president continues to have these rallies where, again, not only does he not wear a mask, but no one on stage with him does, and none of his supporters do. And, frankly, I worry about his supporters going into these indoor rallies, not social distancing and not wearing masks. Even though you are saying that they should be, the president and his campaign are not telling them to do so.
Azar pushed back, noting that the president and vice president are tested often, as are those who surround them, for COVID-19, adding that the administration’s “consistent” messaging has been to “assess your individual circumstances … and then assess the type of activity that you’re engaging in.”
“You have got to take individual responsibility,” Azar stated.
The HHS secretary continued, stressing that current circumstances are different than “several months ago” in terms of “hospital capacity,” PPE, and “therapeutics.”
Tapper conceded that we are indeed in a different place than we were before. However, the host mentioned to Azar that hospital capacity in states like Arizona seems to be a developing concern, and that while Azar and the team have engaged in a unified message, the president and vice president seem to project a different message.
“They are not out there saying that masks are important; they are not out there demonstrating the importance of social distancing,” Tapper stated. “They are holding rallies in which individuals are not social distancing at all.”
Tapper also asked Azar if large gatherings at the Republican National Convention in Florida would be wise.
Azar countered, telling Tapper that the team is “on the phone with the hospitals in Arizona, Texas, California, Florida every day, measuring their PPE supplies and their reserves,” and that “in Arizona, 15% of hospitalizations in-patient are from COVID – the rest of their capacity is consumed with other hospital uses and elective procedures.”
“And you’re going to see governors and hospitals slowing down on elective procedures to make capacity. We will ensure that Americans who need hospital beds have hospital beds,” Azar continued.
“[It’s] very important that we rely on data. We’re following this at the micro level, the county level, the hospital level,” said the HHS secretary.
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