UNITED NATIONS (AP) – The head of the World Health Organization says nations cannot stop their battle against the coronavirus that is sweeping across the globe.
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Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, speaking in Geneva on Thursday, told reporters: “This is not a drill. This is not the time for giving up. This is not a time of for excuses. This is a time for pulling out all the stops.”
He added that “countries have been planning for scenarios like this for decades. Now is the time to act on those plans.”
He said “the worst thing that can happen to any country or even to any individual is giving up. So WHO is saying don’t give up. Don’t surrender.”
U.S. health officials, meanwhile, said Thursday said they expect a far lower death rate for the virus than WHO’s current estimate of 3.4% — saying that it does not account for mild cases that go uncounted. Health and Human Services Assistant Secretary Brett Giroir, citing a model that included mild cases, said the U.S. could expect a death rate somewhere between 0.1% — like seasonal flu — and 1%.