This article comes from WeChat public account: World said (ID: globeusnews) , author: small World children
“The threat of the new crown virus to the United States is still low.”
On March 1, shortly after the first death in the United States in Washington State, US President Trump held a press conference specifically for the prevention and control of new coronary pneumonia. At the press conference, Vice President Pence Reiterated the US government’s assessment of the outbreak.
National Institutes of Health (NIH) infectious disease expert Anthony Fuchs (Anthony Fauci) also said that although there have been cases of death in patients in their 30s in China, most people are only mild and there is no need to worry too much. “This situation can change at any time,” he added.
The United States currently has at least 160 confirmed cases in 17 states. The West Coast was the worst-hit area-the first community-borne case occurred in California; the first death, and several concentrated outbreaks were located in Washington State. Both states have now declared a state of emergency.
As of 9 PM on March 5th, the distribution of diagnosed patients in the United States / The New York Times
The focus of prevention and control in the United States is still on epidemics from abroad. The government has banned foreigners who recently visited China and Iran from entering, and advised its citizens not to visit China, Iran, Italy, South Korea and other countries with severe epidemics. Although the US epidemic has entered the community transmission stage, the government has not adopted any traffic control or regional isolation measures on the territory.
How do ordinary Americans view the epidemic in a relatively relaxed environment?
People: It’s like the flu
Although community communication has begun in the United States, the public does not seem to be particularly worried about it. A Reuters national survey in the United States on March 2 shows that 80% of Americans believe that the epidemic has no effect on them, and most of the people who think they are affected only feel that such issues as falling sales and postponed meetings Impact of work.
The situation reflected in the Reuters survey is happening in Ohio where I live. Maybe it’s because there hasn’t been a confirmed diagnosis in Ohio so far, and the residents I asked these two days gave me very similar feedback: the outbreak was like a flu.
They have different ages and occupations. No one has expressed concerns about going beyond the normal flu season, no one has done any additional protection measures or purchased supplies, and no students have changed their spring break plans for this.
Burney Sanders’ supporter in a mask / network
As for why they are not worried, many people give me the answer: even if new coronary pneumonia is caused, there will not be too serious consequences. This judgment is in line with the information recently emphasized by Trump and several health departments.Correspondence: New crown pneumonia is bad news for the elderly or people with underlying diseases, but for most people without underlying diseases, “you will be fine.”
The infected can heal themselves, but the consolation of this sentence may be a bit overwhelming. The 14-day (possibly longer) incubation period of neocoronary pneumonia, as well as no more acute or visible symptoms than influenza A and Ebola symptoms, gave the epidemic a mild appearance. Even after the news of the first death of a new crown patient in the United States came out, everyone did not touch too much. One interviewee said to me, “I was surprised, but I heard it was normal after hearing that it was an elderly woman.” p>
The deceased was actually a man in his fifties. However, when Trump announced to the public, he said “a good lady”. Most of the people I asked did not notice the president ’s crime. mistake.
Many people have received e-mails from companies or schools about the epidemic. The content is mostly warnings and suggestions, and there are not many shutdowns and school shutdowns around. The cancellation of individual large-scale events is mostly due to the organizer’s independent decision rather than a government order, and the emotions triggered by the cancellation of the event are firstly frustration and annoyance, and secondly, concerns about the spread of the epidemic. But they are not clear. As of March 3, Ohio has only sent eight suspected cases to the CDC.
In January 2018, a doctor in Georgia, the United States, was talking to a patient diagnosed with the flu / Internet
“ I am more worried about my flu. ” Respondent M is a student and he has been coughing for four or five days. M has not been to the countries where the epidemic is most severe. He believes that if he has a fever, he is more likely to have a common cold, flu, or even “air allergy” than new crown pneumonia.
Like M, most of the people I asked said that if they have a fever, they will first follow the flu treatment at home instead of going to the hospital, which is consistent with the mild treatment recommended by the CDC. When I asked if I would do the test,Most people frankly ignored it. M also said that if he went to the hospital, the doctor might suggest him to have a test, but that would incur a lot of costs, and compared to a very small possibility, M thought it was not worth it. M knew that the test itself was free, but he insisted that once he went to the hospital, he would incur a large “don’t know where it came from” cost.
Does panic panic exist?
Although news about stockouts, grain storage, and even toilet paper and bullets in the Chinese online community is skyrocketing, Most American residents do n’t feel any material shortage that is “impacting life”. Anyone who prepares for the end of the world will be there at any time: a picture of California residents hoarding hundreds of bullets and a video of an American wanting to buy Shuanghuanglian appear on the Internet, but the behavior of these people It is not a proof of the overall situation.
The confession of masks in the United States is obvious, but such confessions began before the first human-to-human case in the United States. A number of North American volunteers in Wuhan have confirmed that the shortage of masks and sharp price increases first appeared at the end of January. A number of volunteer organizations have adopted the method of calling on fellow citizens to purchase materials and send them to designated warehouses to raise materials. These materials have provided important help to Wuhan, but also meant a large amount of purchase in the retail channel.
By the beginning of February, it would be difficult to buy masks or other materials that can be donated across borders at reasonable prices and standards throughout the United States.
Notification of Sold Out of Mask in US Drugstore / Network
But these have not had a major impact on the lives of American residents. Of the ten U.S. residents I asked, only one considered whether to buy a mask and gave up instantly when they saw the price of Amazon masks. He said that during the outbreak of the first flu, American residents did not have the habit of wearing masks, because wearing masks is not only uncomfortable, but also makes it easy for passers-by to avoid themselves; more importantlyYes, wearing a mask may be useless.
Similar to Europe, well-known doctors in the United States and mainstream media have publicized that ordinary people do not need to wear masks. They believe that the negative effects of incorrect wearing and the “false sense of security” brought by masks will increase the chance of infection. . Wearing a mask all the time is better than washing your hands frequently and not touching your face.
Whether the masks or protective clothing purchased by the public for personal use or assistance have not taken up the supplier’s share of the regular supplies provided to the hospital; the masks at health institutions such as hospitals are sufficient, which in the words of one interviewee said ” Use is as wasteful as usual, and people who pass by want to get a few. “
The current diagnosis of about a hundred cases in the United States has not brought great pressure on medical institutions, but as the number of confirmed diagnoses has increased almost without suspense, many relevant personnel have also expressed concerns to the media about the future situation. It is confusing that in the absence of a large shortage of medical supplies, the protective measures of American medical staff seem to be very simple, even when transferring patients in the elderly centers with the highest concentration of epidemics, they did not wear any protective clothing.
Medical staff is transferring a suspected patient / network
Similarly, cleaning supplies such as alcohol and disinfection wipes are non-emergency daily necessities in American homes. Although many store shelves have been emptied, people who only buy wipes once a few months do not feel it. These materials are in short supply. A salesperson at a pharmacy stated that recently there were cases where individuals bought all single items, but due to the rapid replenishment, I did not feel the difficulty in scheduling.
Questioned detection capabilities
People who are not worried about symptoms and supplies, but worry about the CDC. Since the outbreak, U.S. Policy of strict control of the number of tests has beenThis has raised questions from many parties. At present, there is no public channel to know the exact number of people tested, because the CDC has stopped publishing related statistics on February 29-472, which is the last statistics released by the CDC.
Although it is not clear about the current testing progress, it has to be acknowledged that 472 seems to be an insufficient number even on February 29, especially when compared with other countries-some media pointed out that the United States The first confirmed case was announced on the same day as South Korea; six weeks later, South Korea has completed more than 100,000 tests, compared with less than 500 in the United States.
The diagnosis of a female case in California has further pushed the CDC’s overly stringent testing standards to the forefront. On February 19, the woman was sent to hospital for treatment, and when she arrived at the hospital, her symptoms were already severe. The doctor intubated her and set up a ventilator. Because the woman’s symptoms were highly similar to the viral infection, the hospital suspected that she was most likely infected with the new crown virus.
The hospital / network where the woman in California was diagnosed
Because none of the California Department of Health in the hospital has authority to conduct virus testing, the hospital can only apply for testing at the CDC. However, because the patient has not traveled abroad or contacted people who came back from abroad recently, her condition did not meet the new crown virus detection standard at the time.
It is for this reason that this female patient was not tested in time. Until the fourth day after admission, the CDC finally agreed to the test and the test result was positive-she became the first community-transmitted case in the United States.
Previously, to be tested, you had to meet two criteria while showing clinical symptoms: close contact with a confirmed patient, or travel history in the affected area. In view of the delayed diagnosis in California, the CDC has added a new standard to the original standard: there is no history of exposure, but severe acute symptoms can also be detected.
Considering that the United States hasIt has entered the stage of community transmission, and there are many asymptomatic and mildly infected people. Some voices pointed out: Will overly strict standards cause large-scale missed tests? On March 4th, the CDC updated the relevant information again, announcing that no clear test standards will be given, and medical staff in various places should make their own judgments.
The standard for suspected cases announced by the US Centers for Disease Control before March 4th, but has now been withdrawn / Screenshot of the web page
On the other hand, the Centers for Disease Control and Food and Drug Administration also recently issued a statement announcing the decentralization of testing power at local medical institutions, saying that in the United States laboratories this week will have enough materials to complete one million tests.
But the relevant personnel of the laboratory told Politico that the testing materials are not equal to the actual testing capabilities. Due to the limitation of personnel and site, the actual number of tests will be around 5,000 a day. With the decentralization of more authority, it will be much easier for people who are willing to go out to be tested.
The test for new coronary pneumonia itself is free, but this does not mean that going to the hospital is free. According to 2018 data from the U.S. Department of Commerce, 27.5 million Americans do not have health insurance, and more people have very poor insurance.
Based on preliminary calculations by Business Insider, the cost of a single visit without insurance ranges from $ 149 to $ 1,151. (excluding any testing, treatment, and medication Cost) . The average cost of a day of hospitalization is $ 4293. At present, there is no clear standard for the specific cost of a single test. Some government officials responded to the New York Times that testing costs may vary from state to state.
The test fee of $ 3271 for suspected Miami patients circulating on the Internet is not representative: the patient chose to test first and confirmed the flu, and the entire consultation process was not includedContains any detection of the new crown virus, and his insurance has a very high personal contribution cost.
In response to the medical costs of new coronary pneumonia, the State of New York announced on March 2 that insurance companies in New York State will waive all costs incurred for detecting new coronary pneumonia, including emergency expenses, emergency medical expenses, and general medical expenses. State governments and large insurers such as CVS Health are also actively discussing adjustment options.
Two days later, Vice President Burns announced at a press conference that federal health insurance, Medicaid, and private insurance will cover the cost of the New Coronavirus test, “because it is a basic medical benefit.” But he did not elaborate. No What to do with the insured.
This article comes from WeChat public account: World said (ID: globeusnews) , author: small World children