WASHINGTON, Feb 16 (Reuters) - Fiscal policy will remain an important prop of the U.S. economy until the pandemic is “in the rearview mirror,” Kansas City Federal Reserve Chair Esther George said on Tuesday. Rising federal debt will have to be addressed at some point, she said, and the costs to taxpayers “will not be insignificant” if interest rates rise. But right now “the economy needs a bridge to get beyond this public health crisis,” she said. (Reporting by Howard Schneider Editing by Chris Reese)