President Donald Trump is adamant the scientific data ‘will not stand in the way’ of schools re-opening in the United States for the new academic year.

At a press conference, Trump’s press secretary Kayleigh McEnany verified that schools would still re-open despite the infection rate across the US still being at a high level.

She said: "The president has said unmistakably that he wants schools to open.

"And I was just in the Oval talking to him about that. When he says open, he means open in full, kids being able to attend each and every day in their school. The science should not stand in the way of this."

She then later added: "The science is on our side here and we encourage for localities and states to just simply follow the science, open our schools."

"It’s very damaging to our children. There’s a lack of reporting of abuse, there’s mental depressions that are not addressed, suicidal ideations that are not addressed when students are not in school. Our schools are extremely important, they’re essential, and they must reopen."

Following the press conference, McEnany called the reporting of her comments as a ‘case study in media bias’ and then added that ‘the media deceptively suggest I was making the opposite point’.

As of Friday afternoon almost 3.7 million people have tested positive for the virus in the US and 141,150 have died.

A poll released on Wednesday by Quinnipiac showed that 61 per cent of Americans disagree with Trump’s handling of schools as they prepare to re-open.