CDC ISSUES SNAPSHOT OF WORST CASES
ATLANTA» On March 1, there were 88 confirmed cases of the coronavirus in the United States. By month’s end, there were more than 170,000.
The national Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has compiled data on people who were hospitalized from the virus during that month to get a clearer demographic picture of infected patients who have required the most serious medical care.
Approximately 90% of the 1,482 hospitalized patients included in the study released Wednesday had one or more underlying medical conditions. Older people infected with the virus were more likely to be hospitalized; men were more likely to endure severe cases than women; and black people were hospitalized at a higher rate than whites. The study also found that hospitalization rates for COVID-19 have been significantly higher than for recent outbreaks of influenza.
The data, based on hospitalizations from March 1 to 30, was taken from a network of hospitals in parts of 14 states, including New York, Connecticut, California and Ohio. The area studied includes only about 10% of the overall population of the United States, but is seen as a representative snapshot of the virus’ spread and the demographic breakdown of patients.
The CDC uses information on hospitalizations to help public health officials better understand the evolving epidemiology of a disease, and to help in the planning and prioritization of health care resources.
On Wednesday, the CDC also announced new guidelines outlining how employees who are considered essential by their employers but who have been exposed to people infected by the virus can go back to work. The guidelines apply to workers who do not feel sick and are able to follow certain precautions.
Such workers can return to work if they take their temperature before heading to their workplace, wear a face mask at all times and practice social distancing while on the job, Dr. Robert Redfield, the CDC director, said at the White House coronavirus briefing. While at work, they should not share headsets or other objects that touch their face, and they should not congregate in break rooms or crowded places, he added.
Redfield said that employers should send workers home immediately if they develop any symptoms. He also said they should increase air exchange in their buildings, and should clean common surfaces more often. The goal, he said, is to “get these workers back into the critical workforce so that we don’t have worker shortages.”
In its report on hospitalization data, the agency cautioned that the findings about COVID-19 were preliminary, with the number of cases expected to increase considerably as the virus continues to spread and as testing becomes more available.