Is the U.S. “Flattening the Curve?” Here’s What the Numbers Say.
As countries scramble to flatten the curve and stem the tide of the coronavirus outbreak, TIME put together charts showing how six nations are faring. Three of them are below, the number of daily new confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the U.S., Italy, and South Korea.
The numbers don’t look good for the U.S., which, as of this afternoon, has reported well over 65,000 COVID-19 cases, according to a tracker from Johns Hopkins University. Every day, the number of Americans confirmed as infected by the virus that causes COVID-19 is higher than the day before. As physician and global health and public policy professor Gavin Yamey wrote in TIME last week, “The United States has a narrow window of opportunity to determine the fate of its coronavirus crisis. Will we end up looking like Italy or South Korea?” (Experts point to South Korea and China as examples of countries with large outbreaks that managed to flatten the curve.)
Elijah Wolfson, senior editor at TIME, notes that it may be too early to know the effect of stricter public health policies that have recently been rolled out in various parts of the U.S. What’s more, different states are taking different approaches because of the country’s fragmented regulatory system and in the absence of clear federal guidance. But since testing has ramped up in recent weeks—and reached levels comparable to other nations like South Korea— the U.S. appears to be responding more urgently. “You can only make good public health care decisions when you have good data,” Wolfson says. “Until recently, we literally didn’t have the data to act.” What we’re seeing now is public health officials and administrators reacting to “real” numbers and not “wishful” or speculative ones, he says.
Chris Wilson, director of data journalism at TIME, cautions that the data available are based only on confirmed cases—meaning that they do not take into account unreported and unconfirmed cases, of which there are likely to be many at this point in time. But the numbers suggest that if the U.S. had been “more organized and proactive just over a week ago,” it could have made a stronger dent in containing the outbreak, he says. The growth of the contagious disease has been rapid. “It’s just the nature of exponential growth, that every new person who you add expands the problem many folds,” Wilson says.
Around the world, hospitals are dealing with a looming glove shortage as a lockdown by Malaysia—the country that dominates global production of this essential piece of protective health care gear—has led plants to cut staffing, according to the Associated Press. And the closure of schools around the world has derailed the way that kids learn, writes Angelina Jolie in an article for TIME.
The Situation in the United States
In the U.S., the coronavirus continues to devastate the economy and workforce. Some 3.28 million Americans filed for unemployment last week—more than quadruple the previous weekly record set in 1982, according to the Associated Press. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said earlier today that the Fed plans to provide essentially unlimited lending as the country grapples with containing the disease.
The U.S. is also experimenting with innovative ways to test for and treat the coronavirus. A blood plasma treatment for COVID-19 is set to get its first trial run in New York and one at-home test company based in California is pushing for an at-home coronavirus test. Meanwhile, Planned Parenthood and other abortion providers are suing Texas over moving to ban abortions during the coronavirus outbreak.
All numbers are from the Johns Hopkins University Center for Systems Science and Engineering, and are accurate as of March 25, 8 PM eastern time. To see larger, interactive versions of these maps and charts, click here.
WHAT ELSE YOU SHOULD KNOW
So, What’s in the $2 Trillion Stimulus Package The U.S. Senate Just Passed?
The legislation includes direct payments to Americans, expanded unemployment insurance and $150 billion for the health care system and hospitals. Read more here.
COVID-19 Could Bring Home Americans Imprisoned in Venezuela
Six U.S. businessmen have been imprisoned in Venezuela for more than two years. Venezuela’s chief prosecutor said they were arrested as part of a probe into “corruption of the worst kind.” The prison they’re in has already reported four cases of the coronavirus. Their families want them out. Read more here.
Who Has a Right to Know If You Test Positive?
The short answer: It’s complicated. But in times of a pandemic, privacy concerns must be balanced with efforts to protect others, especially if you’re in close contact with them. Read more here.
What Americans Are Buying in the Midst of a Global Pandemic
Lots of beans, disinfectants and oat milk, according to new data compiled by Nielsen. Consumers appear to be less interested in perfume, sunscreen and vegetable party platters. Read more here.
Here’s How to Help—Or Get Help—in the Pandemic
TIME reporter Mahita Gajanan offers helpful tips on ways to direct your support—and they’re not limited to donating money. Read more here.
Why Coronavirus Will Hurt the Health of America’s Poor the Most
COVID-19 has drawn a clear line between people with white-collar jobs that allow them to follow public-health advice and work from home, and those in service-focused jobs who must be physically present—thereby risking infection—to collect a paycheck. Read more here.
How Real Americans Are Faring in the Current Job Crisis
TIME reporter Justin Worland spoke to a woman who says she and her husband were both laid off and that her one-year-old son’s daycare has been closed. “We’re just trying to figure out where our next paycheck is going to come from,” she says. Read more here.
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