'A Yankee Stadium of death': Trump walked back on his prediction for the total number of US coronavirus deaths, admitting that the death toll may rise as states reopen

• President Donald Trump walked back his previous estimates for the total number of coronavirus deaths in the US, saying that expert projections have been "so out of whack."
• Statistical models are based on particular data available at a given time, though certain variables may change as a situation, like the novel coronavirus spread, evolves.
• Various experts and scientific models have predicted that the number of US coronavirus cases and the death toll will significantly increase as US states begin lifting lockdown restrictions, with one estimate saying the US could see 3,000 deaths each day by June 1.
• Speaking to ABC's "World News Tonight" anchor David Muir in Arizona on Tuesday, told Muir that previous models "have been so wrong from day one."
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

President Donald Trump walked back his previous estimates for the total number of coronavirus deaths in the US, saying that expert projections have been "so out of whack," while also admitting that more people are likely to die as states reopen.

Speaking to ABC's "World News Tonight" anchor David Muir in Arizona on Tuesday, Trump discussed the growing coronavirus death toll in the US as some states begin to lift their lockdown measures. Specifically, Muir touted several recent expert projections that predicted the number of US coronavirus would significantly increase in the months ahead without proper mitigation measures.

As of Tuesday evening, the US has reported over 1.2 million cases and over 71,000 deaths.

On Monday, the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington forecasted nearly 135,000 deaths due to COVID-19 in the United States by August, mainly linked to states reopening. A draft government report seen by The Washington Post on Monday predicts that the US would see over 200,000 cases per day and 3,000 deaths each day by June 1.

Anthony Fauci, the country's leading infectious diseases expert, said in March that there could potentially be between 100,000 to 200,000 deaths related to the coronavirus and millions of cases.

Trump told Muir that previous models "have been so wrong from day one."

"They keep making new models, and they're wrong," he said.

"Those models that you're mentioning are talking about without mitigation," he continued. "Well we're mitigating and we've learned to mitigate, but we can be in place, work in place and also mitigate."

Statistical models are based on particular data available at a given time, though certain variables may change as a situation, like the novel coronavirus spread, evolves.

Trump admitted that his administration initially thought the total death toll would be between 60,000 to 70,000 deaths.

"You're talking about filling up Yankee Stadium with death," he said about that initial number, before acknowledging that the toll has surpassed his expectations.

He added that it was possible that the death toll would increase as the country moved to reopen, but said lifting lockdown was necessary for economic prosperity.

"We can't sit in the house for the next three years," he said.

At a Fox News town hall on Sunday, Trump said he had revised his prediction to "80 or 90" thousand deaths in the US, saying that the number "goes up rapidly."

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