WATCH: Answering Your Questions About Coronavirus
WATCH
BY LAURA SANTHANAM / PBS NewsHour
More than 100,000 people have gotten sick from COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus that has swept the globe in recent months. Another 3,300 people have died after they were infected.
And as the number of cases in the U.S. continues to rise, so too do questions about how the virus spreads and how the average person can protect themselves. Health officials are simultaneously trying to understand the virus while improving they way they identify cases and contain those that are known — and encouraging people to just practice good hygiene (and to be cautious, but not panic).
These numbers emerge as the World Health Organization estimated that the disease’s mortality rate could be 3.4 percent. But it is too soon to know that number, says Dr. Lawrence Gostin, global health law professor at Georgetown University who also directs the World Health Organization Collaborating Center on National and Global Health Law.
President Donald Trump signed a $8.3 billion novel coronavirus response package Friday, funding efforts to shore up supplies to help federal, state and local public health workers combat the virus’ spread. Roughly $3 billion would go toward developing a vaccine and medications designed to fight the virus.
The PBS NewsHour answered those questions shared over social media about COVID-19, how to protect one’s self and how to prevent this disease from getting worse.
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