Coronavirus: 'US has no science-based reopening policy', Bernie Sanders warns

Democratic senator Bernie Sanders has said 50 states are "going it alone" with no science-based national policy as the United States begins reopening from coronavirus lockdowns.

During an interview with ABC News' This Week, the former presidential candidate deflected questions about "Obamagate" and how tough Joe Biden would be on China, towards Mr Trump's coronavirus response.

Mr Sanders used his first Sunday morning TV interview since failing to win the Democratic presidential primary to tell host George Stephanopoulos that the president blames everybody but himself for the problems the country faces.

"What they're trying to do now is instead of address the pandemic that we have, and I should say, George, that the scandal of the moment is that we don't have a national policy," he said.

"We should have a national policy based on science. We should have testing going on all over this country so that when we reopen the economy, workers understand that they're working in a safe environment."

"Instead, you have got 50 states going it alone because we don't have that national protocol based on science."

The White House's reopening guidelines for the US's 50 states to follow was created through the input of its coronavirus task force coordinator Dr Deborah Birx and National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases Director Dr Anthony Fauci.

Mr Sanders said that the $3 trillion coronavirus relief package passed by House Democrats needed improvements, and urged Congress to add a "paycheck security process" to circumvent corporate interests.

He continued that the pandemic should make the country start "rethinking some fundamental tenants of our society", like whether health care is a human right or a benefit.

"But you know Trump will blame everybody and everything instead of dealing with the crisis that we face and the crisis that we face is reopening the economy safely based on science, not 50 states doing it alone," he said.

"The crisis we face is that Congress has got to act now to address the enormous suffering and unemployment that is currently existing."

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