Much of the world is beginning to see coronavirus cases decline. Italy, France, Germany, Turkey, and perhaps China, if the government is to be believed. But in the U.S., the number of confirmed cases and deaths has only slightly declined. And if you remove New York from the numbers, the rest of the United States continues to see an increase in cases. Why?
The New York Times writes: “The answer isn’t completely clear, given the complexity of the virus. But the leading suspect, many experts say, is the uneven nature of the U.S. response — like the shortage of tests so far and the mixed approach to social distancing.“
“The problem with the American response is that it’s so haphazard,” Ashish Jha, director of the Harvard Global Health Institute, told the Times’ David Leonhardt.
And the curve could very likely continue in an upward trajectory as states feel political pressure to begin reopening. A private government forecast obtained by the Times shows the U.S. is on track for 3,000 deaths a day by June 1.
The Washington Post reports states are reopening, with the encouragement of Donald Trump, against the guidelines from the White House.
“A slew of states — such as Texas, Indiana, Colorado and Florida — have pushed forward with relaxing social distancing guidelines even as the number of people testing positive in many states has increased in recent weeks and testing continues to lag behind. White House recommendations released last month encouraged states to wait to see a decline in cases over a two-week period, as well as having robust testing in place for front-line workers before entering “Phase One” of a gradual comeback.“
The bottom line is, according to the Post, about one-third of states still see an increase in coronavirus cases while only a small number are reporting declining numbers. Many are staying relatively the same.
