U.S. coronavirus 'extraordinarily widespread', say White House experts

By Doina Chiacu

 

FILE PHOTO: Dr. Deborah Birx, the White House coronavirus response coordinator, addresses a news conference about the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic in the Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House in Washington, U.S., May 22, 2020. REUTERS/Leah Millis/File Photo

 

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States is in a new phase of the novel coronavirus outbreak with infections "extraordinarily widespread" in rural areas as well as cities, White House coronavirus experts said on Sunday.

 

Coronavirus cases continue to surge in some parts of the country and the public health officials are trying to work with governors to tailor responses for each state.

 

"We are in a new phase," said Dr. Deborah Birx. "What we are seeing today is different from March and April. It is extraordinarily widespread" in rural as well as urban areas.

 

"To everybody who lives in a rural area: You are not immune or protected from this virus," Birx said on CNN's "State of the Union."

 

Birx, the White House task force coordinator, said people living in multigenerational households in an area that is experiencing an outbreak should wear masks inside the home to protect the elderly or those with underlying conditions.

 

Admiral Brett Giroir, an assistant Health and Human Services secretary, continued to stress the importance of wearing masks.

 

"If we don't do that, and if we don't limit the indoor crowded spaces, the virus will continue to run," he said on NBC's "Meet the Press."

 

"We are very concerned and this is a very serious point."

 

The coronavirus, which first appeared in China, has infected 4.6 million people in the United States and killed more than 155,000 Americans, according to a Reuters tally.

 

The United States is in a new phase of the novel coronavirus outbreak with infections "extraordinarily widespread" in rural areas as well as cities, a White House coronavirus expert said on Sunday. Lisa Bernhard produced this report.

 

 

Birx said federal officials have been working on individual reports for each state examining community trends and hospital records. "Each of these responses have to be dramatically tailored," she said.

 

She said what she witnessed as she visited 14 states over the last three weeks gave her cause for concern.

 

"As I traveled around the country, I saw all of America moving," Birx said. "If you have chosen to go on vacation into a hot spot, you really need to come back and protect those with comorbidities and assume you're infected."

 

If people wear masks and avoid crowds, Giroir said, it gives the same outcome as a complete shutdown.

 

"That's why we're going to all the states, we're on local radio, we give specific instructions to every governor by county, what they need to do when we start – when those counties start tipping yellow, because that's the time when you have to stamp it down," he said.

 

(Reporting by Doina Chiacu; Editing by Lisa Shumaker)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2020-08-03

 

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But but donald said it was all a hoax he said it would just disappear I think he is wrong bigley wrong

Keep your eye on what counts: deaths and hospitalizations, not reported infections.

 

Look at the chart of Covid deaths over the past several months (Table 1):

 

https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/nvss/vsrr/covid_weekly/index.htm

 

Does that chart suggest we've now entered a dangerously critical new phase?

 

And as for Trump, haters are gonna hate no matter what.

 

If he'd grabbed control from the states and put the country into lockdown they'd be calling him King Donald the Dictator.

2 minutes ago, taxout said:

And as for Trump, haters are gonna hate no matter what.

 

If he'd grabbed control from the states and put the country into lockdown they'd be calling him King Donald the Dictator.

Yea, they don't even think the fact he passed a dementia test without cheating, unlike his SATs, is not totally awesome.

Edited August 3, 20205 yr by shdmn

13 minutes ago, taxout said:

Keep your eye on what counts: deaths and hospitalizations, 

 

Does that chart suggest we've now entered a dangerously critical new phase?

 

The USA fighting statues, black and white, hard right and leftys, republican and Democrat, statues. Anti maskers, anti vaxxers, anti tracing apps etc etc. 

Amazing stupid. Amazing selfish. 

 

Covid not care about this nonsense. 

 

 

 

And for those to lazy to click on the link, here's the chart of weekly Covid deaths from CDC:

 

 

1 hour ago, taxout said:

Keep your eye on what counts: deaths and hospitalizations, not reported infections.

 

Look at the chart of Covid deaths over the past several months (Table 1):

 

https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/nvss/vsrr/covid_weekly/index.htm

 

Does that chart suggest we've now entered a dangerously critical new phase?

 

You should go to school and learn to read this kind of data. The title says "Provisional Death count", and indeed most of the data from mid July onwards hasn't been collated, even the last week isn't shown at all. The sharp drop you see only reflects this lack of data.

This here is more up to date:

 

Edited August 3, 20205 yr by Boomer6969

”indeed most of the data from mid July onwards hasn't been collated.”

 

Your basis for that assertion? Or are you reading into this what you want to see? Do you just jump on the word ”provisional" without knowing what it actually means in this context?

Over/under on Dr. Birx?

 

Maybe it's time to stop testing, and reporting Covid deaths?

 

Then we'll have the virus under control?

 

 

Still waiting on the "powerful" Covid "strategy" trump promised.

 

Oh, and the signing of that "Health Care Bill", promised two weeks ago was due Sunday. Anyone seen it?

1 hour ago, taxout said:

Your basis for that assertion? 

The source data published on the same site: the Covid related mortality in the week ending July 18 is about 5 times higher than that of the week ending July 25. No medical miracle can achieve this, even in Trumpland. So please consider the graph Madame Yinn and myself are pointing to. Graph which is consistent with the one you want to believe in so much, but only until about mid July. 

 

4 hours ago, webfact said:

"To everybody who lives in a rural area: You are not immune or protected from this virus," Birx said on CNN's "State of the Union."

 

Of course not - a "duelling Banjos" hick goes to the big city for the day, gets home and innocuously gives it to his sister (?), and it then spreads in the boonies like wildfire. 

3 hours ago, taxout said:

And as for Trump, haters are gonna hate no matter what.

 

If he'd grabbed control from the states and put the country into lockdown they'd be calling him King Donald the Dictator.

 

He would be called a leader. Instead he thought it better to not be responsible, toss it to states and mayors, let them fight it out for limited supplies, money, general health directives with no federal help or guidance. Donald could then sit on the sidelines and make nasty tweets about them. What Fun when it was just blue states.

 

Unfortunately for Don, & Dr Birx who famously claimed it 'will fall dramatically' it did not work that way. Estimates of another 20,000 dead by the end of August are being revised upward, with no end in site.

 

Short term, as in right now, If Donald and the Republicans do not extend aid at previous level and keep foreclosures from happening, they will lose the election right now. In August. I would not have thought they were so short sighted, but you can't polish a bowel movement as they say. 

No matter what the 3 top White House experts laid out regarding the dire situation of the pandemic, it will be a total waste of time if the only person who can take affirmative policies to stop the virus is not listening and showing no empathy to the sufferers. His attention is only to himself and the election. 

It is sad in a way, the U.S. most powerful (military) country in the world, yet no common sense when it comes to mask wearing and social distancing.  Education may be one reason.  The 35% or so who would rather believe in something other than science. Strange how anti-maskers call those following the science and common sense "sheep", when they are all "lemmings" following POTUS or religious nonsense

 

 "PISA results, from 2015, placed the U.S. an unimpressive 38th out of 71 countries in math and 24th in science. Among the 35 members of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, which sponsors the PISA initiative, the U.S. ranked 30th in math and 19th in science."  

The U.S. is also 27th in healthcare, so those who get sick have less chance of getting proper care in many areas.  https://www.businessinsider.com/us-ranks-27th-for-healthcare-and-education-2018-9

Sarah Cooper's lip-syncing/quoting Donald explains why the U.S. has had zero national leadership in fighting COVID in the U.S.

 

 

U.S. coronavirus 'extraordinarily widespread', say White House experts

 

Really?  Learned that from reading a newspaper, did you?  The rest of us knew it months ago.

Your boss is the one who gets to go around saying "who knew?" like a babbling idiot, no need to imitate him.

 

 

22 minutes ago, Pib said:

Sarah Cooper's lip-syncing/quoting Donald explains why the U.S. has had zero national leadership in fighting COVID in the U.S.

 

 

Time to ban tiktok.

Just now, stevenl said:

Time to ban tiktok.

yea...TikTok which is mostly used by teenagers/young adults to post short videos usually around 15 seconds long on most every subject under the sun (just like Youtube) should be banned--NOT!!!   It would be like banning freedom of speech...that's what they do in communist/authoritarian ruled countries.

18 minutes ago, stevenl said:

Time to ban tiktok.

 

Sorry,  I couldn't disagree more with you.  First off, I don't doubt the authenticity of the voice used.    That's clearly things Trump's said  with all usual  stupidity and brashness.   And secondly why would you think something satirical should be banned?   The actress  did an outstanding job.     Better you don't watch it if you find it  personally upsetting.

 

And  as for Pib, all I can say is it's a very  good find and thanks for posting it.

3 minutes ago, Andy from Kent said:

 

Sorry,  I couldn't disagree more with you.  First off, I don't doubt the authenticity of the voice used.    That's clearly things Trump's said  with all usual  stupidity and brashness.   And secondly why would you think something satirical should be banned?   The actress  did an outstanding job.     Better you don't watch it if you find it  personally upsetting.

 

And  as for Pib, all I can say is it's a very  good find and thanks for posting it.

Your sarcasm meter is off.

4 minutes ago, Andy from Kent said:

 

Sorry,  I couldn't disagree more with you.  First off, I don't doubt the authenticity of the voice used.    That's clearly things Trump's said  with all usual  stupidity and brashness.   And secondly why would you think something satirical should be banned?   The actress  did an outstanding job.     Better you don't watch it if you find it  personally upsetting.

 

And  as for Pib, all I can say is it's a very  good find and thanks for posting it.

Woosh - you missed the humour

5 hours ago, shdmn said:

Yea, they don't even think the fact he passed a dementia test without cheating, unlike his SATs, is not totally awesome.

The test is not a “pass fail” test. it’s an indication of possibly having or starting to have dementia.
 

You only have information from him, and he is known for inventing his own “truth”

 

I have no opinion as to any changes in his mental health. 
 

Perfectly normal individuals do not usually take tests for conditions they don’t have or are not suspected of having.

27 minutes ago, Pib said:

yea...TikTok which is mostly used by teenagers/young adults to post short videos usually around 15 seconds long on most every subject under the sun (just like Youtube) should be banned--NOT!!!   It would be like banning freedom of speech...that's what they do in communist/authoritarian ruled countries.

 

8 minutes ago, Andy from Kent said:

 

Sorry,  I couldn't disagree more with you.  First off, I don't doubt the authenticity of the voice used.    That's clearly things Trump's said  with all usual  stupidity and brashness.   And secondly why would you think something satirical should be banned?   The actress  did an outstanding job.     Better you don't watch it if you find it  personally upsetting.

 

And  as for Pib, all I can say is it's a very  good find and thanks for posting it.

With a ban already announced by Trump, I would presume it to be extremely obvious my post was sarcastic.

The USA has about 4.25% of the world population

But has just under 1/4 of the infections and deaths

This is the website for the facts

The facts speak for itself

 

https://www.worldometers.info/world-population/us-population/

 

"If people wear masks and avoid crowds, Giroir said, it gives the same outcome as a complete shutdown."

This is from the doctor on the Trump team, so please skip rant about demos or mass media

Given the spotty at best wearing of masks (on chins, under noses, or not at all) and gatherings here in Thailand, I am not optimistic. Farangs much worse than Thais from what I have observed

8 hours ago, taxout said:

Keep your eye on what counts: deaths and hospitalizations, not reported infections.

 

Look at the chart of Covid deaths over the past several months (Table 1):

 

https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/nvss/vsrr/covid_weekly/index.htm

 

Does that chart suggest we've now entered a dangerously critical new phase?

 

The trouble with your analysis is that the chart makes it look like the number of deaths is reaching zero. This is only the case because of the way deaths are reported. The reported number of deaths PER DAY is between 450 and 500 with some variation.

 

The reported deaths on a particular day only tell you about the number of infections that occurred about three weeks or more before that date. If you are only going to rely on that data, you are going to be severely hampered in getting ahead of the pandemic. You could have a declining death rate for weeks with a surge in cases at the same time - the surge will only appear in the mortality figures at least several weeks later.

 

So the only way to get ahead of the virus is to try to test as much as possible and trace contacts. Otherwise, you won't be looking at 500 per day in a month or two's time but thousands per day dying.

 

The Covid-19 deaths in the USA is now almost three times the number of American servicemen and women who died in the Vietnam war. Back then, Americans thought that the number of servicemen who died in Vietnam over at least a decade was shocking.

8 hours ago, taxout said:

And for those to lazy to click on the link, here's the chart of weekly Covid deaths from CDC:

 

 

You are doing great only 157,000 deaths and ICU's not empty anymore.

Gee, who would have thunk it, what with such expert leaders at the helm, taking charge of this crisis immediately and decisively from the getgo back in March/April.

9 hours ago, Yinn said:

The USA fighting statues, black and white, hard right and leftys, republican and Democrat, statues. Anti maskers, anti vaxxers, anti tracing apps etc etc. 

Amazing stupid. Amazing selfish. 

 

Covid not care about this nonsense. 

 

 

 

I was just about to pos the same. Thanks for the add.