COVID-19 Impact on the World

Covid-19
Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

Covid-19

COVID-19 has traveled from Wuhan China to almost the entire planet. As of April 3, 2020, over 1 million people have been diagnosed with the coronavirus, resulting in over 58,000 deaths. Many countries, such as Canada, were prepared for the spread of COVID-19, which resulted in only 208 deaths out of 12,000 confirmed coronavirus cases.

Even though the first case of COVID-19 was reported in December 2019, many countries were not ready to contain the spread of the pathogen. The first case of coronavirus was reported in Italy in January 2020. However, Italy did not go into lockdown until March 2020, causing the virus to spread in the area. Italy currently has over 119,000 coronavirus cases, which has led to over 14,000 deaths.

The United States was also not prepared to contain COVID-19 resulting in the virus reaching all 50 states. The U.S. currently has over 200,000 cases of coronavirus, with almost 7,000 deaths reported, making the U.S. the leader in confirmed cases of the pathogen. In May 2018, U.S. President Donald Trump and his advisor John Bolton disbanded the CDC pandemic team with President Trump claiming “they could be rehired very quickly.” The CDC has stated this cost the US valuable time in containing the virus.

New York has been hit harder than any state, with half of all cases being reported from the state. New York reported over 102,000 cases of coronavirus, resulting in almost 3,000 death. New York Governor Andrew Cuomo estimated between 40 and 80 percent of New York residents will get the virus.

According to the CDC, the worst-case scenario is between 160 and 214 million people in the U.S. contracting the coronavirus. The same models estimated that between 200,000 and 1.7 million people could die from the coronavirus in the country alone.

Multiple mayors and governors across the U.S. have placed their cities and states on lockdown to prevent the spread of the pathogen, with almost half of all states having issued a form of lockdown. The governor of California effectively banned gathering outside of the home.

Public health officials have estimated that it will take at least 18 months to create a coronavirus vaccine and distribute it to the public. An assistant professor at the John Hopkins University School of Medicine said he feels “we may be coming out of this at the beginning of May.”

The president of the Federal Reserve Bank, James Bullard, predicted that the unemployment rate in the U.S. could hit 30 percent in the second quarter of the year, topping the record of 24.9 percent unemployment in 1933, at the peak of the Great Depression. Based on these numbers alone, it appears that the U.S. is poised for another “Great Depression.”

COVID-19 has hit the world by storm, and studies have shown this pandemic will cause long-lasting effects.

Written by Jaylen Conwell
Edited by Kimberley Spinney and Cathy Milne-Ware

Sources:

USA Today: ‘Gross misjudgment’: Experts say Trump’s decision to disband pandemic team hindered coronavirus response

World Meters: COVID-19 CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC

The Balance: Unemployment Rate by Year Since 1929 Compared to Inflation and GDP

Bloomberg: U.S Jobless Rate May Soar to 30%, Fed’s Bullard Says

Featured and Top Image Courtesy of SoQ錫濛譙’s Flickr Page – Creative Commons License

Share:

Send Us A Message