US shows ‘very large acceleration’ in Covid-19 cases, has potential to become new epicenter of pandemic – WHO

WHO spokesperson Margaret Harris was asked whether the US could become the new epicenter of the global coronavirus pandemic. “We are now seeing a very large acceleration in cases in the US So it does have that potential,” she replied.

More than 33,400 people have tested positive for Covid-19 across the US and 400 have died as a result of the virus, the nation’s Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported on Monday.

Some US states and cities, including New York and Los Angeles, have introduced emergency quarantine measures in a bid to stop the spread of the disease. However, there has been no nationwide lockdown of the kind seen in Italy and France.

Doctors have struggled with insufficient levels of testing and not having access to enough medical supplies and equipment. According to a report published by Reuters last week, just 60,000 people have been tested in the US, a country of 330 million.

On Sunday, New York Mayor Bill de Blasio warned that the city was “about 10 days away” from experiencing widespread medical shortages.