Preparing for the coronavirus

We talk about the coronavirus, its spread to the U.S., the government's response, and steps people should take to be prepared.

Listen 48:59
A monitor displaying a map of Asia and a tally of total coronavirus cases, deaths, and recovered, is visible behind Vice President Mike Pence, center, and Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar, left, as they tour the Secretary's Operations Center following a coronavirus task force meeting at the Department of Health and Human Services, Thursday, Feb. 27, 2020, in Washington. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)

A monitor displaying a map of Asia and a tally of total coronavirus cases, deaths, and recovered, is visible behind Vice President Mike Pence, center, and Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar, left, as they tour the Secretary's Operations Center following a coronavirus task force meeting at the Department of Health and Human Services, Thursday, Feb. 27, 2020, in Washington. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)

Guest: Ezekiel Emanuel, Jennifer Nuzzo

The coronavirus is making many people uneasy — stores are sold out of hand sanitizers, disinfectants and masks. Six people in Washington State have died from the virus and more than 100 cases have been confirmed in the U.S. in 15 states. Covid-19 has spread around the globe, and although 3000 people have died of the illness, most people who contract it are expected to recover. But there’s still a lot we don’t know about the novel coronavirus, including how widely it will spread and how dangerous it will ultimately be. This hour, we discuss what we know about the coronavirus, look at the government’s response, and learn about the steps individuals can take to be prepared. Our guests are EZEKIEL EMANUEL, Vice Provost of Global Initiatives at the University of Pennsylvania and a former Obama White House Health Policy Adviser, and JENNIFER NUZZO, senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security.

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