The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is warning Americans that they should brace for the spread of coronavirus into their communities, the New York Times reported Tuesday.
“We are asking the American public to prepare for the expectation that this might be bad,” a C.D.C. official said, according to the New York Times.
The CDC says it’s not a matter of “if” but “when” the coronavirus will spread throughout the U.S, according to the New York Times.
Breaking News: The CDC warned Americans to begin preparing for the possibility of a coronavirus outbreak: “This might be bad.”https://t.co/shDMqT9TAz
— The New York Times (@nytimes) February 25, 2020
Public health officials are unsure whether the spread of the virus to the U.S. would be mild or severe, the New York Times reported. But Dr. Nancy Messonnier, director of the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, said that Americans should prepare for significant disruption to their daily lives. (RELATED: Iran’s Deputy Health Minister Infected With Coronavirus As The Country Becomes An Epicenter Of The Outbreak)
“It’s not so much of a question of if this will happen in this country any more but a question of when this will happen,” Messonnier said, according to the New York Times. “We are asking the American public to prepare for the expectation that this might be bad.”
The U.S. has 53 confirmed cases of coronavirus, including 19 new patients who were diagnosed over the weekend, health officials said Monday according to the New York Post. The virus has infected nearly 80,000 people worldwide and has caused around 2,600 deaths as of Feb. 25.
