Many Americans have been impacted by the forced shutdown of our communities in response to the Covid-19 coronavirus. At this writing, tens of millions have lost their livelihoods and have been forced to seek unemployment, which has many Americans anxious to get back to something closer to normal. With evidence that shows the spread of the virus is slowing and significant progress has been made in “flattening the curve,” it’s time for us to begin reopening our country.  One expert doctor has recently weighed in: Dr. Ben Carson, the Secretary of Housing and Development who sits on the economic task force and also happens to be a world-renowned surgeon.

The Daily Caller reports:

Housing and Urban Development Secretary Dr. Ben Carson said Thursday that America cannot wait for the eradication of the coronavirus before reopening because “our economy will be gone also.”

Carson, as a member of President Donald Trump’s economic task force, advocated for a path of balancing public safety with economic reality during an interview on Fox News’ “America’s Newsroom.”

“It doesn’t mean that we have to wait [to reopen] until every vestige of the virus is gone. You know, common sense would dictate that if we wait until everything is gone our economy will be gone also.” (RELATED: Bill Barr Calls For End To ‘Draconian’ Coronavirus Restrictions On May 1)

Calling the pre-coronavirus crisis economy “incredibly strong,” Carson said the “the fundamentals, the underlying structure of our economy is very solid and very strong.”

Trump, who has said he has “total” authority to decide when to reopen the American economy, has called that decision the “biggest” he has ever had to make in his life.

“So what we want to do is we want to maintain that economy, bridge the gap, and that means that you’re going to have to infuse some significant federal funds. But we want to keep things going so that once the virus problem has been eliminated, we can go back,” the HUD secretary said.

Dr. Carson is correct, we cannot wait much longer. Every person assumes a certain level of risk every time they leave their house. The average American may have to contend with car accidents, heart attacks, and more every day. We cannot afford to wait until the virus is completely gone, but with the risk of Covid-19 decreasing on a daily basis, we must take responsible measures to begin reopening our country.