The Surgeon General has urged the nation to ‘come together’ to fight coronavirus and warned: ‘This week, it’s going to get bad’ in a plea to the public to stay indoors and stop spreading the deadly disease.
Dr. Jerome Adams appeared on Today on Monday morning to tell young Americans who are still going out and socializing despite being warned to stay indoors and distance themselves by 6ft.
He fumed over the number of people still going out in large groups and referred to the shocking number of crowds he saw in Washington DC via a webcam set up for people to virtually enjoy the famous cherry blossom blooms.
‘I want America to understand. This week, it’s going to get bad. We really need to come together as a nation. You’re seeing young people out in beaches – here in DC.
‘The district set up a cam to watch the cherry blossoms. You look on the cam and you see more people than cherry blossoms. This is how the spread is occurring.
‘We really, really need everyone to stay at home. I think there are a lot of people who are doing the right thing. But unfortunately we’re finding out a lot of people think this can’t happen to them.’
Dr. Jerome Adams appeared on Today on Monday morning to tell young Americans who are still going out and socializing despite being warned to stay indoors and distance themselves by 6ft
Dr. Adams said the US demography is younger than other countries. Nearly 30 percent of the cases were among people under the age of 45.
‘The demography seems to be very different in the US versus in other countries. There are theories that it could be because we know we have a higher proportion of people in the US and also in Italy who vape – we don’t know if that’s the only cause.
‘It’s important for people to know: You can get this disease, you can be hospitalized from this disease, you can die from this disease.
‘Most importantly, you can spread it to your loved ones.
‘We need you to really lean in. That’s why I reached out and I want to give a shoutout to Kylie Jenner who really stepped up last week and sent out a message,’ he said.
Dr. Adams also said the figures in New York – where there are more than 5,000 cases of the virus, more than five percent of the total cases in the world – reflect ‘what happens two weeks ago’.
‘We don’t want Dallas or New Orleans or Chicago to turn into the next New York and it means everyone needs to be taking the right steps right now and it means stay at home.
Despite warnings from the government to stay inside or 6ft away from people at all times, many people went to view the famous cherry blossom bloom in DC over the weekend
There are now more than 35,200 cases of the virus in the US and 471 people have died
The majority of New York City is following the rules and staying at home. Time’s Square is shown on Sunday
‘It means our 15 days initiative was really based on the fact that when it came out a week ago, we were two weeks behind Italy.
Tom Bossert, former national security adviser, said on Sunday New York’s cases would continue to rise for six weeks
‘We really hoped to instill a sense of urgency in America,’ he said.
Dr. Adams’ warning came as Tom Bossert, former national security adviser, predicted that New York City’s cases will continue to increase for the next six weeks.
He believes the worst spike will come in the next two weeks.
‘France, Spain, GB and US are now all on the same epidemic curve.
‘Pretty soon he US will become the leader because of its size in terms of reported cases and that will be a terrifying day – what I’m trying to communicate to people is that while NY is bad, the rest of the country can’t take a breath.
‘We’ve got a six week growth curve in NYC, the next 2 weeks will be the most aggressive multiples of 10 potentially.’
As of Sunday night, there were more than 35,000 cases of the virus in the US and 471 people had died.
In New York City, there are more than 5,000 cases 117 have died.
Their forecasts are less optimistic than President Trump’s Twitter suggestion that the current state of crisis could be over in 15 days.
Trump said on Sunday night that he would reassess the situation in 15 days
The president on Sunday night tweeted: ‘WE CANNOT LET THE CURE BE WORSE THAN THE PROBLEM ITSELF.
‘AT THE END OF THE 15 DAY PERIOD, WE WILL MAKE A DECISION AS TO WHICH WAY WE WANT TO GO!’
It prompted many to ask whether the lockdown that some states were experiencing would be over in 15 days.
Health experts have long said that the virus will take much longer to stunt. Trump has resisted a national lock down, saying there is no need for it because many states are ‘unaffected’.
There is at least one case of the virus in every state in the country and there has been for around a week.
Medical personnel at a drive-thru facility in Illinois on Sunday. The healthcare system is being overwhelmed