China News Service, February 8th. According to real-time statistics from Johns Hopkins University in the United States, as of 7:22 on February 8th, Beijing time, the cumulative number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 globally has exceeded 106 million, with more than 2.31 million deaths. example.
In the United States, where the epidemic is most severe, experts in that country have analyzed that the actual severity of the epidemic may be 10 times the official data; at the same time, the mutant new coronavirus is spreading rapidly in the United States; in order to alleviate the economic pressure brought by the epidemic, the White House is trying to promote Rescue plan.
On February 5th, local time, staff at the COVID-19 vaccination site at Yankee Stadium in New York conducted temperature and safety checks for citizens who came to vaccinate.
Photo by China News Agency reporter Liao Pan
US experts: The epidemic may be 10 times more serious than the official report
At present, there are nearly 27 million confirmed cases in the United States and more than 463,000 deaths.
However, a research team at Columbia University in the United States recently announced its digital model. The conclusions show that on any given day, the actual active cases (newly infected or still infectious) in the United States may be 10 of the number of officially reported cases that day. Times.
Sharman, the lead researcher of the study and an infectious disease expert at Columbia University, said that the researchers first estimated how many people in the United States are truly infectious every day so far, and then compare it with the number of people who have been tested and counted as confirmed cases. For comparison.
The results showed a huge difference between the two.
Sharman estimates that during the entire epidemic, the number of people infected in the United States may have been five times more than the number officially reported.
In response, Sharman sighed, “When we saw confirmed cases, we really only saw the tip of the iceberg.”
If you consider the current active cases, the situation will be worse.
Sharman emphasized that infected people are contagious on average 3 to 4 days before symptoms appear.
Therefore, the study also counts the number of people who have been infected before and who are still spreading the virus.
Based on this, Sharman estimates that the actual number of daily active cases in the United States is about 10 times the actual reported data.
Data map: The United States under the epidemic.
Photo by China News Agency reporter Liao Pan
The mutant virus is spreading rapidly in the United States
At the same time, more pessimistic things continue to happen.
A new study found that the mutated new coronavirus previously discovered in the UK is spreading rapidly in the United States, and even obvious community transmission has occurred.
Studies estimate that the infectiousness of this mutant virus is 35 to 45% higher than that of the virus that appeared earlier in the United States.
Studies believe that many patients infected with the mutant virus in the United States have not reported recent international travel, which indicates that the virus has "significant community transmission across the United States."
Researchers warn that without "decisive and immediate public health action," the new and more infectious variants "may have catastrophic consequences for the U.S. COVID-19 mortality and morbidity rate within a few months."
Data map: The United States under the epidemic.
Photo by China News Agency reporter Liao Pan
Can the US$1.9 trillion bailout bill pass?
The U.S. epidemic has not seen an "inflection point", which has caused the country's economy to continue to be under heavy pressure. The January employment report showed that since the outbreak of the epidemic, nearly 10 million jobs have been lost in the United States.
In order to relieve some of the economic pressure, the White House is trying to promote the US$1.9 trillion rescue plan proposed by President Biden in Congress. Treasury Secretary Yellen said on February 7th local time that she expressed support for the plan, saying it was to make the United States. The best way for the economy to return to its pre-epidemic level.
As part of the rescue plan, the plan intends to directly distribute $1,400 in cash to eligible people, but the specific threshold has not been finalized.
Yellen said that the threshold should be set at an annual income of $60,000, "because the troubled middle class needs help."
However, the prospects for the smooth implementation of the bill are uncertain.
Currently, the White House is facing opposition from the Republican Party in Congress, especially the financial support required for the plan.
But Yellen warned that if there is no additional $1.9 trillion in federal support, the unemployment rate in the United States will remain high in the next few years.