Is Coronavirus affecting your travel plans?

[RamblingMad]

Im sorry that's completely inaccurate. Currently-91534March2020 the reported death rate in South Korea is 50 of 7478 confirmed cases That is a .6 percent death rate. Probably pretty accurate since They are very proactive on testing and are catching cases that might other wise have been missed. If the flu which has a CFR of about 1 percent kills 25 thousand you would expect COVID 19 to kill about 15,000..

If this is really no worse than the flu, why are countries trying to reduce its spread? That seems like an overreaction if you’re right.

 

[DopeyDame]

I think it's also important to remember that the fatality rate isn't something out of our control, in some sense.

If everyone gets sick at once, and the hospitals get overloaded, than some sick people die who might have lived had they had access to sufficient medical care. So the fatality rate will be higher when the hospitals are overloaded, even if the virus itself and its effect on people is exactly the same.

That's why it's *so* important to slow down the spread of the virus and "flatten the curve" of new cases. even if 10 million people in the US get the virus eventually, it's a HUGE difference to recovery if those 10 million get it over the course of a few months or over the course of a year. The slower it spreads, the more likely those that are sick will be able to get the best medical care and recover.

 

[Christine]

My firm is the same. I read that an employee of a B4 in Tyson's Corner, VA has tested positive now. I'm guessing that B4 mandatory (when possible) telework is right around the corner.

Wonder what B4 company that is? My son works for a big corp in Tyson's Corner.

 

[godisney14]

This coronavirus is definitely more communicable than the regular flu. There should be no argument of that. Anyone saying otherwise is just.....

Korea’s trend line is better than other countries because they deployed all resources immediately, having tested ~10,000 people in just the first week. There’s walk-in and drive-through tests, along with hand sanitizers pretty much everywhere outside in public areas.

In the US, we barely even got to 1,000 tests in about 2 weeks.

 

[Boardwalk Tigger]

Yes. We are cancelling our Disney trip for Spring Break. Just don't need the risk.

We are also considering cancelling our trip for end of March. Have to call Disney today to talk about this.

 

[soccerdad72]

Wonder what B4 company that is? My son works for a big corp in Tyson's Corner.

B4 = Big 4 Accounting Firm

Ernst & Young, Deloitte, KPMG and PriceWaterhouseCoopers

 

[wvjules]

B4 = Big 4 Accounting Firm

Ernst & Young, Deloitte, KPMG and PriceWaterhouseCoopers

I think she wanted to know which Big 4 had an employee test positive.

 

[ellbellthomps]

I would wait til the beginning of next week for any decisions. They have the better testing starting at some point this week and will show how widespread it is. If it's small like the slow tests are reporting, you're fine. If China's tests that we are using parallel china's, then I'd consider cancelling.
All and all, I booked a refundable trip to Japan in July and am still planning on going. It's not bad (yet).

 

[tinkerhon]

If you use South Korea’s numbers, it’s about 6x worse than the flu. If the flu kills about 25 thousand people in the US each year, I’d expect this to kill a more than 120 thousand.

another thing to consider is that there is currently a vaccine for the flu - no vaccine, (yet) for Covid - hard to compare the two viruses ( at least right now )

 

[RamblingMad]

another thing to consider is that there is currently a vaccine for the flu - no vaccine, (yet) for Covid - hard to compare the two viruses ( at least right now )

I agree. The media is down playing the severity to keep people from panicking.

 

[ShirikiUtundu]

If this is really no worse than the flu, why are countries trying to reduce its spread?

Countries try to reduce the spread of the flu and other diseases. The virus is novel but the concept is not.

 

[ShirikiUtundu]

I agree. The media is down playing the severity to keep people from panicking.

I don't think I could disagree more with a statement.

 

[SaintsManiac]

I agree. The media is down playing the severity to keep people from panicking.

What? They are losing their minds over it. I refuse to watch the national news right now.

 

[DisneyKhormid]

This coronavirus is definitely more communicable than the regular flu. There should be no argument of that. Anyone saying otherwise is just.....

Korea’s trend line is better than other countries because they deployed all resources immediately, having tested ~10,000 people in just the first week. There’s walk-in and drive-through tests, along with hand sanitizers pretty much everywhere outside in public areas.

In the US, we barely even got to 1,000 tests in about 2 weeks.

The CDC and WHO have both said that it's impossible to contain the flu and if this was a new strain of flu it would have infected millions by now.

 

[RamblingMad]

I don't think I could disagree more with a statement.

Based on what? The measures that Italy have taken are far beyond what countries are doing for the flu. I recommend watching European news outlets to get a better perspective.

 

[gwynne]

I agree. The media is down playing the severity to keep people from panicking.

Ummmm....no.
They are giving out information. It's been helpful to me and many others in making decisions.
This situation changes frequently. I appreciate the updates.

 

[pryncess527]

Countries try to reduce the spread of the flu and other diseases. The virus is novel but the concept is not.

These are not normal steps countries take every flu season

 

[BuckeyeBama]

Ummmm....no.
They are giving out information. It's been helpful to me and many others in making decisions.
This situation changes frequently. I appreciate the updates.

Yeah, I think that the media is doing its job in informing the public. I am not sure if everyone else is.

 

[Brianstl]

Countries try to reduce the spread of the flu and other diseases. The virus is novel but the concept is not.

When was the last time we had multiple countries forcibly restricting travel inside their own borders and one country welding shut people inside apartment complexes because of the flu or some other disease?

 

[pryncess527]

“The media” is not a monolith. If you think the media is being is creating panic, you might watching the wrong sources. If you think the media is downplaying the seriousness, you might also be watching the wrong sources.

I’m seeing quite a wide range in how the story is being handled by various media sources. It’s one reason I’ll stick to professional scientific & health organizations for information