Chief of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: This will be the most difficult period in the country’s health history

Ten months after the United States recorded its first death from COVID-19, the country has reached appalling numbers: 308,000 have died and more than 17 million have been identified. confirmed cases of coronavirus. The statistics get worse every nice day.

According to CNN, 113,000 were hospitalized on Wednesday. COVID-19 patients. It is already 15 days in a row, when more than 100,000 people are hospitalized. patients. On Wednesday, records of deaths (3,784), new cases (more than 270,000) and hospitalizations were reached.

Vaccines are already arriving and the country has already begun vaccinating the population, but the overall impact of vaccination on the nation’s health will only be felt in 2021. Experts warn that if Americans don’t change their behavior quickly, the Death and despair will continue in the coming weeks, hospitals will be overcrowded, unemployment will rise further, and political divisions and gaps will widen in the country. Now is the time to go the other way.

“We have to act as if everyone we come into contact with is infected with the coronavirus, so we have to sacrifice and give up more than we were asked to give up in March and April,” said Kavita Patel, a physician at primary care and researcher at the Brookings Institution in Washington. – Everything will only get worse if we don’t want to severely restrict our movement. I say that we must not only return the plane tickets that we buy, I mean the fact that even at Christmas we must not invite guests and not go anywhere.

The latest data is extremely worrying. In the first two days of December, more new cases of coronavirus were reported in the United States (5157) than in all of March. In the spring, the virus spread more in the northeast of the country, especially in New York. But now mortality is increasing everywhere.

“We have an uncontrolled pandemic and, in a broad sense, we still don’t have a vaccine. We will definitely see an increase in the number of cases, an increase in the number of people treated in hospitals and intensive care units will be overcrowded, ”says Vinas Gupta, a lung specialist at the University of Washington.

No “enemy” can be blamed for what is happening this year. Public health experts agree on one thing: The United States has failed to stop the virus before it becomes uncontrollable.

“We have so many great minds and scientific skills and theoretically even financial opportunities, so we could have done it differently. But we didn’t,” said Natalie Azar, professor of rheumatology at the University of New York Lighton Medical Center. York and NBC News medical adviser.

How do we find ourselves in such a well?

According to the harshest critics of the outgoing US administration, the problems start at the top: They point out that President Donald Trump has mishandled the virus outbreak from day one.

He himself openly admitted that he sought not to downplay the spread of the virus to avoid “panic.” He also called for unproven treatments, clearly ignored the recommendations of leading scientists, held meetings at the White House without wearing masks, and ultimately helped carry the crisis to another front during the political war.

“We have a president who failed in his primary duty to mobilize all the resources of the federal government to help protect Americans, explain what is happening, and recommend a national plan to save as many lives as possible,” said the historian of the chairman of NBC News, Michael Beschloss. . “Mr. Trump never did that.”

However, the policies and rhetoric of the Trump administration can only partially explain the tragic situation that has unfolded in the United States over the past ten months. The root causes need to be further examined: that dysfunction has extended far beyond any presidential term.

The virus outbreak has exposed many malfunctioning systems: hospitals not receiving funding; deterioration of infrastructure in rural areas and poor neighborhoods; legislative loopholes that have repeatedly hampered financial support; the status quo health insurance, which leaves too many vulnerable people vulnerable; a social composition imbued with cultural disagreements and so-called gentism.

COVID-19 hit non-white communities particularly hard and drew attention to the systemic racism and economic inequality that plagued the United States. Black families without access to good quality housing and health care have been disproportionately affected.

“There have been structural problems for a long time, and the crisis has exposed them as the weakest link,” said Wayne AI Frederick, president of Howard University and professor of surgery. He also added that the health problems that often afflict black Americans – diabetes and hypertension – have further increased the risk for these communities.

At the same time, for some time, Americans have been trapped in a media environment poisoned by disinformation, political propaganda, and conspiracy theories. Simple preventive measures, such as wearing a mask, are becoming a battle issue between the parties. Paranoia and mutual mistrust often push scientific data into the background.

What awaits us next?

The country’s outlook for the coming months looks bleak, although there are some signs of hope. Pfizer, BioNTech and Moderna are pleased to announce that the vaccines they have developed are 95%. cash, suggesting that this nightmare may end in 2021.

However, it will take time to figure out which vaccine is best, produce large quantities, and distribute it safely and correctly. And at the same time, many epidemiologists and infectious disease experts are warning that the coming months are likely to be severe as air temperatures drop and people spend more time indoors, where the risk of spreading the virus is greatest.

“The reality is that December, January and February will be tough,” warned Robert Redfield, director of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, in a recent speech at the US Goodwill House. “I truly believe this will be the most difficult period in the history of public health in our country.”

Find more statistics at Statista

The Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME), an independent global health research center of the University of Washington, predicts that more than 460,000 people will be registered in the United States on March 1. deaths from coronavirus.

Mr. Redfield has previously said that the death toll from COVID-10 could approach “around 450,000” in February.

“We know that, like other coronaviruses, this virus likes cold weather and low humidity. We can expect 250-300 thousand per day. new cases, ”said K. Patel, a fellow at the Brookings Institution. Based on what he is now noticing, he says that “there is a much greater risk of a worst-case scenario than an alternative scenario.”

To avoid worst-case scenarios early next year, health experts are urging Americans to adhere even more strictly to the most basic measures: wear a mask, avoid crowds, keep your distance, and avoid traveling to other states.

IHME’s predictions show how important it is for everyone to wear masks. In many states, a daily increase in the number of new infections is projected if the requirements to wear masks and adhere to social distancing are relaxed. According to experts, the difference between the universal use of masks and the relaxation of this requirement and the social distance requirement is an additional 390 thousand. loss of American life.

Nobody believes that the task of waiting is easy. If the statistics on confirmed cases match the gloomier forecasts, hospitals will simply flood and the workload of doctors will reach unbearable levels.

The Joe Biden administration, coming to power, is undoubtedly facing a psychologically angry society, racked by “pandemic fatigue.” But if Americans are tired of the pain, agony, and hardships brought on by this horrible virus, then they will finally have to agree on a common goal, which is the only way to solve the structural problems exposed by COVID-19.

This winter will definitely be tough. And when it’s over, the hard work will only begin.