Most Americans have been taking the coronavirus seriously, but some say that there is one group that has not.
Health officials are making an appeal to young Americans to take the proper precautions to stop the spread of the coronavirus and protect vulnerable populations.
Dr. Anthony Fauci appeared on CNN’s “Cuomo Prime Time” to discuss the spread of the coronavirus, the development of treatments and the responsibility young Americans have in controlling the spread.
Chris Cuomo started the conversation by pointing out that nobody knows how long this is going to go on for and asked Fauci to weigh in on that.
Fauci responded by explaining the curve of the coronavirus and if it reaches its peak, there will be a lot more illness and death.
He continued on to point out that the nation’s responsibility is to enact measures to “blunt” the curve. He went on to discuss the practice of “social distancing” and how that may not be enough to make the virus disappear.
“When you blunt the curve by modifying society, particularly with … ‘social distancing,’ you can blunt it but it is unlikely that you are going to make it completely disappear,” Fauci said.
Watch Fauci’s comments below:
Dr. Anthony Fauci urges young people in particular to take caution regarding coronavirus, saying “you have a responsibility, a societal responsibility, to protect the vulnerable.”
— CNN (@CNN) March 19, 2020
“You do that, interestingly, by not letting yourself get infected,” he adds. pic.twitter.com/D5i0538jsR
Fauci’s comment on social distancing did not take away his encouragement of young Americans to take action.
Later in the interview, Cuomo transitioned to his claim that some young people have been “nonchalant” about the coronavirus and how some of the social isolation seems to be extreme for them.
Cuomo pointed out that they are now seeing coronavirus cases in young Americans.
He asked Fauci, “What changed?”
Fauci pointed out two reasons young people need to take it seriously. The first being that they can be “in harm’s way” themselves. The second he pointed to is that they can be part of the solution.
“You have a responsibility, a societal responsibility, to protect the vulnerable,” Fauci said, adding, “You do that, interestingly, by not letting yourself get infected.”
The total number of confirmed cases of coronavirus globally has topped 220,000, as of Thursday morning.