Elderly and vulnerable first

Afriend of this page is an emergency physician at a major city hospital. He said that Thursday night, the place was inundated with “worried well,” young and otherwise healthy people concerned that they might be getting sick. How can we put this? Stay the hell away. A side effect of the tremendous attention heaped on the novel coronavirus, much of it warranted, is that people are on high alert, no matter their actual vulnerability.

But the numbers are very, very clear about something: The vast majority of people infected with COVID-19 recover, exactly as they would from a flu. Of cases diagnosed so far, eight in 10 have resolved themselves, requiring no hospitalization. Among the young and otherwise healthy diagnosed, the numbers are much higher than that.

Actual recovery rates are probably higher still. Testing has been so paltry that there are certainly large numbers of people infected who never made it into the official count. By definition, it’s the less serious cases that don’t get counted.

But for a subset of patients — the elderly, people with underlying respiratory problems or compromised immune systems — the coronavirus requires serious attention: intensive care, a ventilator, more.

These are in very limited supply. There are about 100,000 intensive care unit beds and 160,000 ventilators nationwide. For everyone.

Otherwise healthy people who think they have the coronavirus should consult their doctor. We want possible carriers tested so that they can self-quarantine and slow the spread.

But it is morally wrong for an individual who is bound to recover to elbow in on limited hospital resources, while potentially infecting more people along the way. Mayor de Blasio and Gov. Cuomo, say it with us: If you’re otherwise healthy, under 60 and just have a cough and fever, don’t go near the ER. Call a doc, go home and stay there.