- This week, the CDC said the coronavirus has likely infected ten times as many Americans as the official case totals.
- If accurate, that would mean it is also ten times less deadly. Which would put your death rate in line with seasonal flu.
- State and health authorities recommend wearing a mask, minimizing travel, and physically distancing yourself to reduce the risk of transmission.
According to the CDC, the total number of coronavirus infections in the US may be ten times greater than official counts. The estimate is based on blood antibody tests. Experts from the Centers for Disease Control revealed the estimate to reporters on Wednesday night.
If the infections are as widespread as CDC thinks, the coronavirus is far less deadly than authorities have feared. It would have a mortality rate on par with seasonal influenza.
The CDC report claims a trio of veteran Stanford University researchers who were criticized for reaching the same conclusion earlier this year. Using blood serum antibody tests, they said in April that the coronavirus was much more prevalent than official (and therefore less lethal) case numbers.
New CDC estimates came to light amid an increase in official coronavirus cases in the US The world’s third most populous country saw its biggest jump in a single day in new coronavirus cases since it began. the pandemic on Wednesday:
In the United States, state health departments reported 38,115 new infections Wednesday, beating the previous one-day record of 34,203 set on April 25. Texas, Florida and California led the way, with the three states reporting more than 5,000 new cases. one piece.
On Sunday, the World Health Organization marked the biggest one-day jump in new cases worldwide. The United States had the second largest peak after Brazil and followed by India.
Results Suggest Coronavirus May Be Less Deadly Than Flu
The official total US coronavirus case as of June 25 is about 2.3 million according to the Centers for Disease Control. The CDC also reports 121,809 total deaths in the United States attributed to COVID-19 as of Friday.
If CDC’s estimate is correct, COVID-19’s death rate is an order of magnitude lower than what authorities initially feared earlier in the year. Those concerns led to unprecedented state and municipal orders to shut down businesses and public places, and take refuge there.
These fears were fueled by a COVID-19 perceived mortality rate ranging from 3% to 5%. That’s 5,000 deaths for every 100,000 infections. Journalists came up with that figure through the deceptively simple operation of dividing the number of COVID-19-related deaths by the total case. Many media outlets are still reporting this week. It did not occur to them that there could (most likely be) more infections than cases.
But if we divide US COVID deaths by the CDC’s new estimate of 23 million or more infections, the death rate approaches 0.5% or 500 deaths per 100,000 infections. The 2016-17 flu season is the most recent with final estimates for CDC infection totals.
The health authority says about 29,000,000 Americans got the flu that year. With flu deaths estimated at 61,000, the death rate was 0.2% or 210 deaths per 100,000 infections.
That puts COVID-19 in the same order of magnitude as seasonal flu for fatality. And that’s without the coronavirus vaccine. Meanwhile, about half of the American population has been vaccinated against the flu every year for the past decade. The CDC says that the flu vaccine is up to 60% effective in reducing flu illness.
CDC’s revised estimate could be good news for stocks, the economy
Many analysts believe that the increase in cases weighs heavily on the stock market.
After making extraordinary profits the first week of June, the main benchmarks have languished in June. Meanwhile, the price of gold, conventionally a safe haven in economic recessions, has moved to eight-year highs.
Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect the views of CCN.com.
