Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation's top infectious diseases expert, said the World Health Organization "was not correct" in suggesting Covid-19 transmission from an asymptomatic person to an uninfected person is very rare.
Speaking on ABC's “Good Morning America, Fauci weighed in on the comments from a WHO official who suggested asymptomatic people only rarely spread Covid-19, contradicting guidance from public health organizations, including the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
WHO tried to clarify the remarks the next day by saying asymptomatic spread is "a major unknown."
Fauci said WHO "walked that back because there's no evidence to indicate that's the case," and explained evidence shows between 25% to 45% of infected people likely are without symptoms.
"And we know from epidemiological studies they can transmit to someone who is uninfected even when they're without symptoms. So to make a statement, to say that's a rare event, was not correct," Fauci told ABC's Robin Roberts.