(02-27-2020, 08:41 PM)Aroura Wrote: I thought perhaps this deserves it's own thread. Maybe we can discuss the threat of pandemics in general as well.
The stats as of today, Feb 27th are:
Confirmed cases worldwide: 82,781
Deaths: 2,817
Serious or critical condition: 8,471
Number of countries affected: 51
Number of cases in Italy: 655
Number of cases in the US: 60
My understanding is that the CDC has identified the first non-direc, community communicated case of the illness in the US this morning. That means it is outside of quarentine.
The CDC has, as of Tuesday, classified this as a pandemic, due to community spread in multiple countries.
The CDC has also announced they expect it to spread inside the US.
Quote:The CDC said Americans should prepare for the possibility of disruptions to their daily lives if the virus were to start spreading in the U.S. That could include closing schools, working from home and delaying elective medical procedures.
. 25, 202001:44
"We should all be dusting off our pandemic preparedness plans and rehearse them very quickly," said Dr. William Schaffner, an infectious disease specialist at Vanderbilt University. "The core concept is social distancing."
President Trump is downplaying the concerns raised by the CDC, and has appointed Mike Pence to be in charge of a committee to be in charge of the US response.
While Governor of Indiana, Mike Pence closed the last Planned Parenthood clinic, which was also the last free clinic int he sate that did AIDS testing. This resulted in an AIDS outbreak in the area. Mike Pence has also taken very anti-science positions in the past, such as stating "Smoking doesn't kill". Americans are not reasured.
This isn't to say people should panic. We absolutely shouldn't. But I do think people should take CDC warning seriously. Do what you can for emergency preparedness. Check on your elderly neighbors to make sure they have enough for at least a week. The elderly are at the highest risk in the event of a spread, and we should do what we can to protect them.
Such quaint numbers *sheds a nostalgic tear* *goes ahead and considers panicking* *facepalms at tonight's breaking news*
Is this sig thing on?
