As the number of cases of COVID-19, the illness caused by the coronavirus, continues to grow, the nation is on edge. Doctors and scientists do not know what percentage of the general population has been infected and what percentage of the infected develops symptoms.
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Editor’s note: The World Health Organization has declared a coronoavirus pandemic, and more cases have been announced in several states. School closings, such as the statewide closure of schools in Ohio, Oregon, Maryland, New Mexico and Michigan announced March 12, are often one of the actions that officials consider. Public health scholar Aubree Gordon explains why.
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Most schools across Germany will now be shut from Monday after North Rhine-Westphalia joined Bavaria, Baden-Wuerttemberg and other states in announcing closures.
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Austria on Friday tightened its coronavirus response by announcing the closure of non-essential retail businesses, locking down two western communities and suspending flights to France, Spain and Switzerland.
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Sudan announced on Friday its first case of the novel coronavirus following the death of a 50-year-old man the night before.
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Switzerland will close its schools in a bid to halt the spread of the new coronavirus, the government said Friday, adding that it would provide billions in aid to hard-hit businesses.
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The German government on Friday unleashed the biggest economic aid package in the country’s post-war history, offering companies “unlimited” credit to keep them afloat during the coronavirus crisis.
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Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez says the government will declare a two-week state of emergency in a bid to contain the new coronavirus outbreak.
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Ukraine said Friday it would close its borders to foreigners for at least two weeks to prevent the spread of the new coronavirus, as it reported its first fatality caused by the infection.
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Already considered a global epidemic, human obesity continues to be on the rise. According to the Centers for Disease Control, more than 40% of the U.S. population is considered obese.
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