(CNN) — U.S has entered a “new phase” of the pandemic of coronavirus, warned a first-rate expert, as cases increase in both urban and rural areas.
“It is extraordinarily widespread,” Dr. Deborah Birx, the White House coronavirus response coordinator, told CNN on Sunday.
So far, more than 4.6 million Americans have been infected and at least 154,859 have died, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. And the number of deaths in the country is projected to reach at least 173,000 by August 22, according to a new composite forecast from the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
To combat the rampant spread of the virus, health officials have worked with state leaders to offer personalized responses to combat the outbreak in each community, Birx said, adding that some mitigation efforts have begun to show positive results.
“But I want to be very clear,” he said, “what we are seeing today is different from March and April. It is extraordinarily widespread. So everyone who lives in a rural area is not immune or protected against this virus, and that’s why we keep saying, no matter where they live in the United States: they need to wear a mask and practice social distance. ”
The recommendations of health officials have remained the same for months; However, despite the continued escalation in coronavirus cases, some Americans still choose to attend large social gatherings and refuse to cover their faces.
There should be stricter measures and, in some communities, another round of confinement orders, said Dr. James Phillips, a physician and assistant professor at George Washington University Hospital.
“I am concerned that the complacency we have seen with the coronavirus has led to these mass meetings and to a general disagreement with science,” he said. “People don’t wear masks, they don’t distance themselves.”
At least 30 states have paused their reopening plans or have imposed new restrictions to combat an increase in cases, and at least 39 states have some sort of mask-wearing order. But efforts to curb the spread come as parts of the country are preparing to welcome students to schools and college campuses.
“What mainly worries me is the fact that we have not seriously controlled this virus, we are seeing increases in many states and now we are talking about reopening schools and universities in the midst of what I think will aggravate our problem significantly,” said Phillips. .
260 employees infected or exposed in school district
In Gwinnett County, Georgia, where dozens protested the return to school last week, at least 260 Gwinnett County public school employees tested positive for the virus or were in contact with a case, a district spokeswoman. he told CNN on Sunday.
That announcement came days after teachers returned to class for pre-planning in person, reported CNN affiliate WSB.
And in an Indiana school district that reopened for the new course, a student tested positive on the first day of class, prompting school officials to isolate the student and begin tracking down who may have been in close contact. .
School reopens should be done carefully, Birx said, and areas that have reported an increase in infections must first stop cases before starting conversations about receiving students in class.
“If you have a high number of cases and an active spread of the community, just as we ask people not to go to bars, not to celebrate home parties, not to create large broadcast events, we ask the people learning to distance themselves right now so that we can get this epidemic under control, “he said.
In late July, the CDC issued new guidelines that lobbied for the reopening of schools. The guidelines said that children are not much affected by the coronavirus, but they do not attend school. The CDC recommended that local officials consider closing schools or keeping them closed if there is substantial and uncontrolled transmission of the virus.
The guidelines also say that children are less likely to spread the virus than adults, but new studies suggest that children may contribute to its transmission.
In Miami-Dade County, called by some experts as the country’s epicenter, the superintendent announced Sunday that students will continue to learn virtually until at least October.
The superintendent told CNN affiliate WPLG that there is a possibility that some groups of students may return before October, including kindergarten students and children with disabilities, and that there should be a balance between protection and the “resumption of normality”.
Birx: ‘superpropagation’ events must stop
Regardless of many restrictions and guidelines set by officials, it will be the public’s help to address those guidelines that will help reduce the number of coronavirus cases, Birx said.
“If we keep going to house parties, even though the bars are closed, if we are creating interactions where we know it is not safe, because there are several people there, and they do not have face masks and they are not socially distant, it can be assumed that they are not these are super-propagating people, “he said. “These are superpropagating events and we must stop them.”
Birx has said that experts note a pattern of younger Americans who often unknowingly carry the infection home, as many go through the virus without any symptoms and then pass it on to their parents, who then pass it on to their parents. grandparents or other older residents
Despite continued calls for action from Birx and other health officials, some Americans have not adhered to CDC guidelines.
In Philadelphia, police encountered a gathering of more than 500 people on Saturday, police told CNN. In California, dozens of Los Angeles bar goers congregated indoors for a celebration a bar spokesman said should honor first responders. In New Jersey, officials are investigating a teen party that led to the emergence of a group of coronaviruses last month.
And over the weekend, Birx highlighted one more way that Americans are bringing the virus home: by going on vacation at critical points.
“If you have chosen to go on vacation at a critical point, you really need to go back and protect people with comorbidities and assume that you are infected,” he said.
More importantly, he said, people living in multi-generational homes in areas experiencing outbreaks should consider wearing masks at home and assume they are positive if they live with older people or that they may have underlying conditions that put them at higher risk for complications. by coronavirus.
CNN’s Naomi Thomas, Sharif Paget, and Melissa Alonso contributed to this report.
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