CDC recommends no gatherings of 50 or more in US

The Centers of Disease Control and Prevention on Sunday recommended that gatherings of 50 people or more in US be cancelled or postponed over next eight weeks because of the coronavirus pandemic.

As Americans struggled to come to terms with how to change their daily habits, the CDC released new guidance, explaining that large events could help fuel the spread of the disease.

But in a sign of the difficulty of striking the right balance, the statement also said the recommendation did not apply to “the day to day operation of organizations such as schools, institutes of higher learning, or businesses”.

The statement was released not long after President Donald Trump sought to calm a jittery nation by declaring that the government had “tremendous control” over the situation.

For most people, the new coronavirus causes only mild or moderate symptoms.

For some, it can cause more severe illness, especially in older adults and people with existing health problems.