Coronavirus Outbreak May Already Be a Pandemic
Why that’s not as scary as it sounds
Follow Elemental’s ongoing coverage of the coronavirus outbreak here.
Several health officials are saying the outbreak of coronavirus that originated in China and has spread to multiple countries will almost surely be declared a pandemic. One infectious disease expert thinks we’re already there, and another says we likely are or will be soon. Yet while the word “pandemic” might sound scary, the designation does not necessarily equate to historically horrific consequences, and no expert can yet predict how mild or severe this viral outbreak might end up.
“To me, it appears we are currently in the early stages of a mild pandemic with cases in over two dozen countries and sustained human-to-human spread established by this virus,” Dr. Amesh Adalja, an infectious disease expert at the Center for Health Security at Johns Hopkins University, tells Elemental.
That view comes three days after a top U.S. health official said a pandemic is all but inevitable.
“It’s very, very transmissible, and it almost certainly is going to be a pandemic,” said Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease (NIAID), according to a February 2 New York Times article. “But will it be…
