Remdesivir has ‘Little or No Effect' on Covid-19 Mortality: WHO Study

Asked about Trump's effusive praise for Regeneron's antibody treatment, Fauci said that talking about a "cure" could be misleading because it hasn't yet been proven, and the drugs that are currently available have only been shown to have modest to moderate results.

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"We don't have any indication — I think you really have to depend on what you mean by a cure, because that's the word that leads to a lot of confusion," he said.

He then walked through some of the medicines that are currently recommended or have been temporarily approved against the disease.

These include the antiviral remdesivir which has been shown to diminish time to recovery among hospitalized patients, and the steroid dexamethasone, which reduces mortality rates in patients who need supplemental oxygen.

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Regeneron's treatment belongs to a class of drug called monoclonal antibodies. Fauci said that while these had been "showing promise in clinical trials", the research is still ongoing and no final determination has been made.

Fauci was also asked about the low level of mask use at the White House until recently, and what lessons could be learned.

"I think the — the data speaks for themselves," the scientist said of mask-wearing.

"We had a super-spreader event in the White House and it was in a situation where people were crowded together and were not wearing masks. So the data speak for themselves."