What is being done to figure out how they contracted this virus?

The way that works, Jake, is that local health officials are in the lead.

But in the case is this weekend and this week that emerged as, uh, as you said, a community infection we send CDC officials in tow work very closely to identify where they potentially were exposed to the Corona virus, and that aggressive effort is underway.

And who has that?

CDC HHS Actually, our local officials, local health officials, state health officials are the front line of defense, but we move CDC personnel in immediately.

They consult with them because the objective is we get that patient treated, but we want to find out not just where they got it, but we want to find out who else may have been exposed to those people, can receive the kind of treatment and have a kind of recovery that most Americans will have that that even contract this disease.

What do you say to people who heard you and the president Saturday talk aboutthe woman who died and then it comes out later that the CDC had erroneously told you it was a woman.

But actually, it was a man who had died of this.

What do you say to people who say that this doesn't fill them with confidence about the federal state coordination?

Yeah, it was.

The CDC had briefed us speaking to officials in Washington state, and it was just a miscommunication.

It doesn't lessen the tragedy at all.

And again, our our hearts go out to that man's family and his friends in that community.

But I have to tell you, Jake, I mean, the president tapped me to lead this Corona virus response building on the great work our White House task force had been doing.

We've added additional personnel.

I've got one of the leading experts in infectious disease.

This is gonna be my right arm at the White House, joining me tomorrow morning at at in the West Wing.

But if people had seen what I've seen, I think they can be very proud of the work CDC is doing HHS is doing and just is important at the work that that our governors and our state governments and local health officials were doing.

Let me ask you because one area that there's definite need for improvement is the testing kits and the number of test traits they're out there.

The South Koreans have been able to test more than 90,000 of their citizens for the Miranda virus, but the U.

S has had trouble manufacturing the kits.

The CDC has struggled a bit and distributing them tow local labs.

That latest numbers show only maybe around 500 people in the U.

S have been tested.

Why are we so behind other developed countries on this?

And when will there be Maur of these testing kits delivered to the frontline health care providers?

It's a very fair question, and it was one of the first issues that governors I spoke to raised with Mei.

I'm happy to report that this weekend more than 15,000 testing kits have been released.

Also, the FDA has approved a testing regimen that state and local officials can be using.

And beyond that, we actually were working with a commercial provider with the new testing framework to send another 50,000 kits out.

So we're addressing it.

We're leaning into it, and more importantly, we've established a process in a number of cities across the country where if someone presents at the local hospital with a respiratory ailment, we want them also tested for Corona virus.

And so that's why we're gonna move a lot of volume of testing kits.

Is there a goal like working 20,000 more by the end of next week?

I mean, what is the goal here?

I I was informed by our team just in the last 48 hours that we're gonna see 15,000 kits are in the mail.

They're rolling out.

We've approved a process for local testing.

We think we've addressed the issue.

But again, um, I want to emphasize the American people What I've seen what I've heard from these extraordinary personnel at HHS and CDC in, like Dr Fauci is case someone who literally has been there through multiple administrations is we're ready, we're ready.

And then this is an all hands on deck effort and whether it be testing kits or whether it be medical devices or protective gear for health care providers, you know, one of things the president made clear, Jake, our first priority is patients that have contracts to Corona virus immediately after that is any health care providers, any doctors and nurses and people that are gonna be coming alongside people that have contracting this disease.

And so we we literally just entered into a contract with three.

They'll be producing another 35 million masks a month, right starting immediately.

We have about about 43 million masks stockpiled today.

I want to say to your viewers, though, um, it is not necessary for A for Americans to go out and buy masks, right?

It's not gonna do anything for you.

It's the people who have Corona virus that have the masks.

We wear the mask, but more health care provider.

It's our health care provider.

We want to make sure the president's made this clear to May.

We want to make sure that people that are treating people that have contract the Corona virus have the protective gear, the masks and the gloves, and we're working very energetically to accomplish that.

So I do want to ask you a political question about this, even though it I see it primarily as a health issue.

There's been a lot of unfortunate rhetoric on the left and on the right about the Corona virus.

I want you to take a listen to something that the president's son, Don Jr.

Said about Democrats and the Corona virus just on Friday.

Anything that they can use to try to hurt Trump, they will for them to try to take a pandemic and seemingly hope that it comes here and kills millions of people so that they could end Donald Trump's streak of winning is a new level of sickness.

Can we agree that neither Democrats and Republicans want Americans to get the Corona virus and die from it?

I mean that this seems like it seems like very extreme rhetoric.

I don't expect you to criticize the president's son, but you don't think that Democrats want people to contract this disease, do you?

Well, I think what the president said earlier this week and his charge to me is to remind the American people that the risk is low to assure the American people that we're ready, but also to say, as the president said, This is no time for politics and frankly, I think that was Don Junior's point that there has been some very strong rhetoric directed at the president by some members of Congress, and you don't think that was it?

Well, he said, seemingly Democrats want but millions of Americans to die of grown a virus.

But responding to the kind of things that have been hurled is understandable.

But what the president's charge us to do in my conversations, Speaker Pelosi with Senator Schumer my conversations with Republican and Democrat governors is to set the politics aside on this and the work the problem, and and I want to assure your viewers that's exactly what we're doing.

And with, with the exception of some some barbs being thrown by some of the predictable voices in the public debate On on the on the left, the usual shots, the president will take some that I have a real right also, with respect, sir, I for it's not from you, but I've heard some fromthe, right.

Well, look, I What I'm telling you is that this is really a time for us.

Tow come together.

Because remember, we're talking about the health and lives of the American people.

You know, I spoke on the phone last night to Jerry Goldman.

She is the the wife of Carl Goldman, and I caught her on a great night because she just got in a blood test back.

She'd been in quarantine for several weeks.

She got a clean bill health.

It's going home back to their small business.

And she told me Carl's doing great, but he's still got a ways to go before they allow him to go on home and be back in his community.

I mean, we're talking about real Americans dealing with the Corona virus, and I think it really is a time it really is a time for us tow.

Look for ways to come together.

And I have to tell you, Jake, um, the conversations that I'm having with leaders in the Congress, conversations I'm having with, frankly Democrat and Republican governors around the country gives me great hope that as we as we move forward, um, and in the wake of the tragic news this weekend of the loss of American life, I continue to believe that we have an opportunity to come together to make sure our all of our agencies have the resource is that they need.

All of our states have the resource is that they need.