The worst of the coronavirus outbreak is yet to come, according to Vice President Mike Pence.
Pence appeared on the “TODAY” show where co-anchor Savannah Guthrie asked him, “This is much more lethal than the seasonal flu, correct?” He replied, “It is.”
Guthrie went on to cite a statistic from Congress’ doctor saying “a third” of Americans could get the coronavirus.
She then asked Pence, “What do your experts tell you the number of infected Americans is likely to be?”
Pence responded, “Now the suspension of travel from Europe precisely for the reason that we know there will be thousands more cases of coronavirus in this country.”
Before Pence could finish Guthrie interjected asking, “Thousands or millions?”
He replied saying he is going to “leave it to the experts to make the estimates.”
Watch the interview below:
Watch @savannahguthrie's full interview with Vice President @Mike_Pence about the US response and latest news surrounding the coronavirus. pic.twitter.com/Py3pV7UgxU
— TODAY (@TODAYshow) March 12, 2020
Pence’s comments come just after President Donald Trump held his address to the nation to give an update on the coronavirus.
The vice president continued to comment on the measures Trump is taking to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.
“We’re trying to hold that number down as much as possible,” he said. “That’s the reason the president took the action regarding Europe.”
Guthrie acknowledged the extreme measures being taken not just by the White House but by companies and organizations.
She explained, “We’re seeing unprecedented actions on the behalf of sports organizations, companies, travel all across this country.”
Among those organizations include the National Basketball Association as the league announced that it was suspending the season after a player tested positive for the coronavirus.
Campaign events are also being affected as former Vice President Joe Biden recently canceled rallies in Florida and Illinois, replacing them with “virtual events,” as IJR previously reported. Both Biden and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) also canceled rallies in Ohio.