Jonathan Karl of ABC News thanks Dr. Fauci for his service, says he thinks Fauci is among the 'hardest working' people in the nation

ABC News’ chief Washington correspondent Jonathan Karl recently thanked Dr. Anthony Fauci for his service and said that he thinks Fauci is among the "hardest working" people in the U.S.

Fauci has been a prominent public health figure throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.

Karl noted that Fauci will turn 81 years old on December 24 and asked whether he feels a responsibility to continue working until the situation is under control.

"Absolutely, John, there's no doubt about it," Fauci replied. "There's no way I'm gonna walk away from this until we get this under control."

"You know, we're in a war John. It's kind of like we're halfway through World War II and you decide, well, I think I've had enough of this, I'm walking away. You can't do that, you gotta finish it. And we're gonna finish this and get back to normal," Fauci said.

Omicron variant 'really something to be reckoned with': Fauci | ABC Newsyoutu.be

Fauci, who is the chief medical adviser to President Joe Biden, has served as the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases for more than three decades.

During an interview on MSNBC earlier this month, Fauci said that while it would be preferable for people to get vaccinated voluntarily, if they are not willing to do so, "sometimes you've gotta do things that are unpopular but that clearly supersede individual choices and are directed predominantly at the communal good. And that's what we're talkin' about when we're talking about requirements."

Last week Fauci described the term "mandates" as "a radioactive word," but said that, "requirements, people seem to respond better to that."