On Tuesday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warned that the American public needed to prepare themselves for an outbreak of Covid-19 in the U.S.
So far, of the 80,000 cases reported worldwide, 59 of those cases are in the U.S., BUT 42 of those were passengers on the Diamond Princess cruise ship that were evacuated by the federal government to the U.S. when the ship docked in Japan.
Critics have said that the Trump administration is not doing enough to prepare for a bigger outbreak here, but the president insists that his administration has things 'well under control' and that critics are just causing unnecessary panic. The White House has already asked Congress for $2.5 billion for vaccine research and preparedness and response. But some don't think that's enough. Sen. Chuck Schumer, who has harshly criticized the president for not preparing enough for the threat, has introduced an $8.5 billion proposal to prepare, contain and combat the disease, more than triple the president's proposal.
Today, the president arrived back in the U.S. after a trip to India, and immediately announced that he and officials from the Centers For Disease Control and Prevention will hold a press conference this afternoon to address how the administration is handling the coronavirus threat.
Meanwhile, China has reported a slowdown in the spread of the disease there, where it has killed 2,700 people. Because of the slowdown in new cases, China is now refocusing to concentrate on travelers entering China from other countries because of the threat of reinfection. Many areas have implemented stricter health screenings and in some cases requiring a 14-day quarantine of anyone arriving from a country affected by the virus. But there is still no plan to limit or block international travel, as some other countries have done.