Trump: Prepare for a ‘Very Painful Two Weeks’ Ahead – By Cecelia Smith-Schoenwalder (US News) / March 31 2020
The White House coronavirus task force predicted between 100,000-240,000 deaths in the U.S. from the virus.
A notably somber President Donald Trump on Tuesday warned Americans to get ready for the next two weeks to be very difficult amid the coronavirus pandemic.
“I want every American to be prepared for the hard days that lie ahead,” Trump said during the White House coronavirus task force briefing. “We’re going to go through a very tough two weeks.”
Trump’s messaging was more solemn than usual as his task force presented models predicting the number of deaths due to the virus. The officials showed graphs that illustrated the virus’ curve in the U.S., putting the number of deaths from the virus at 100,000-240,000. The models are based on the assumption that some Americans won’t follow social distancing guidelines.
“This is the thing to anticipate but that doesn’t mean that we are going to accept it,” Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said.
Fauci said the number could be lowered if everyone follows the guidelines. Trump said that without any mitigation efforts, such as the social distancing guidelines, the U.S. could have expected up to 2.2 million deaths.
Continue to article: https://www.usnews.com/news/national-news/articles/2020-03-31/trump-prepare-for-a-very-painful-two-weeks-ahead-amid-coronavirus-pandemic
