Fauci says Covid infections are decreasing in all 50 states

Dr. Anthony Fauci, chief medical advisor to the White House, said Wednesday that Covid-19 infections are decreasing in every state in the U.S.

"All 50 states have now shown decreases in the number of infections," Fauci said in an interview with Axios, suggesting that the widespread declines will make it safer for Americans to resume activities such as indoor dining at restaurants.

The U.S. is reporting an average of about 31,200 new cases per day over the past week, data compiled by Johns Hopkins University shows, down 18% from a week ago. Case counts have been on a downward trend since the country's most recent high point about a month ago in mid-April, when the country was seeing more than 71,000 cases per day.

Fauci did not specify over what time period these state-level declines in infections have occurred. A CNBC analysis of Johns Hopkins data shows that average daily case counts have declined by 5% or more in 40 states over the past week.

The data is murky in some places, such as Alabama, which Johns Hopkins says has been publishing backlogged case counts in recent days, making the most recent trend difficult to interpret.

Fauci's statement suggests that the easing of the outbreak is being seen broadly across the country, rather than being more localized with a certain state or region responsible for the declining numbers.