Trump's diagnosis shows US vulnerability to the coronavirus

President Donald Trump’s startling COVID-19 diagsis serves as a cruel reminder of pervasive spre of coronavirus and shows how tenuous of a grip nation has on crisis, health experts said.

With U.S. infections rising for several weeks, Trump was one of about 40,000 Americans who learned y h tested positive when he broke news early Friday. First ly Melania Trump also tested positive, and both were described as having mild symptoms. president went to a military hospital for what White House said was a precautionary visit of “a few days.” Some of his top visers and allies also have tested positive recently.

“ one is entirely out of virus’s reach, even those supposedly inside a protective bubble," said Josh Michaud, associate director of global health policy with Kaiser Family Foundation in Washington.

Eight months after virus first reached United States, worrying signals mounted of what's ahe this fall. NFL postponed its first game because of a worsening outbreak among Tennessee Titans. Some hospitals in Wisconsin have run low on , and experts warned of a likely surge in infections during colder months ahe. Some ecomists say it could take as long as late 2023 for job market to fully recover.

U.S. les world in numbers of confirmed infections, with more than 7 million, and deaths, with more than 208,000. Only a handful of countries rank higher in COVID-19 deaths per capita.

“ statistics are so mindboggling, y make us numb to reality of just how painful, unacceptable and absurd this is,” said Dr. Reed Tuckson, board chairman of npartisan Health Policy Alliance in Washington. “Every single American must double down on ir vigilance. If we don’t, n we are being foolhardy and irresponsible.”

president’s infection occurred as nation has reached a crossros in its response to virus.

U.S. is averaging 40,000 cases a day. situation is improving in Sun Belt states that were hot spots in summer — months after states reopened in May and garings during Memorial Day and July Fourth holidays fueled a surge in infections, hospitalizations and deaths.

Many of those states took action this week to loosen restrictions. Mississippi’s goverr ended a mask requirement, South Carolina’s goverr said he would ease capacity restrictions on restaurants and New Orleans bars were given greenlight to sell carry-out drinks. Florida has moved ahe with an aggressive reopening that gives bars and restaurants latitude to allow as many customers as y choose.

outlook is gloomier in Midwest.

Wisconsin reported a record daily death toll Wednesday, and hospitals in multiple cities said y were running out of . A 530-bed field hospital that U.S. Army Corps of Engineers built on state fairgrounds in city of West Allis in April could be put to use if situation worsens.

Iowa reported more than 1,000 new cases for third consecutive day Friday as virus continued to aggressively spre in many regions of state. South Dakota health officials reported record highs in deaths and cases Thursday.

Dr. William Schaffner, an infectious diseases expert at Vanderbilt University, said Trump’s diagsis “reinforces tion we need a national policy and we need everyone to participate in basic preventions."

Inste, Schaffner said, response “has been subcontracted to goverrs, which has left us with a crazy quilt of approaches.”

For months, Trump has downplayed virus, rarely wearing a mask, holding large campaign rallies and urging businesses and schools to reopen. Masks have t been mandatory for White House staff, despite evidence y help to stop spre.

“w, tragically, this experiment has shown, at highest office of country, it ain’t working. It didn’t work," Schaffner said.

Michaud said nation is experiencing “a dangerous moment.”

“We have lots of schools, universities, workplaces and or businesses and institutions reopening. Colder wear is also on way, which will likely increase chances people will congregate toger indoors,” Michaud said.

If complacency sets in, infections will rise.

“We’re still t doing sufficient testing and contact tracing across country,” Michaud said. “For all se reasons, we’re likely to more transmission in U.S., t less, in coming weeks and months.”

(This story has t been edited by www.republicworld.com and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed)