The motive that you are enclosed within your house, and perhaps have been since March 15 is undoubtedly due to the fact that a new virus was introduced, the so called the CoronaVirus, also known as Covid-19. It has been a lengthy seven months and it feels as if nothing has changed. This leads to the questioning of what actions has the president taken? What actions are we as a society taking?

   Covid-19 is an intriguing virus. For those that have been affected, symptoms ranged from nothing to death can appear any day from 2-14 days after being exposed. 

   This virus was established in China and has been mainly transferred by individuals who traveled. The Center of Disease Control and Protection declares, “The virus that causes COVID-19 is thought to spread mainly from person to person, mainly through respiratory droplets produced when an infected person coughs, sneezes, or talks. These droplets can land in the mouths or noses of people who are nearby or possibly be inhaled into the lungs.” This expounds why officials recommend that you keep at least a six foot distance from people that you haven’t made much contact with; strangers, friends you haven’t seen in awhile, teachers, etc. 

   Adults that are reaching high ages or people who have severe medical conditions, in particular asthma, are at greater risks than say children or young adults. This leads to the question: what should you do to protect yourself and others? One evident factor, that is exceedingly important, is to wear a mask when you leave your house! It’s always better to protect yourself and others to preserve your community from an outbreak. Other important details to protecting yourself is to continue checking up on your health. Completing this will ensure that you are harmless to others when you leave your house.

   After a couple months, Donald Trump has finally put laws to wear a mask when you are out in public. Whitehouse.gov says that Donald Trump, “took swift and decisive action to stop travel from China in January and enhanced airport screenings to help stop cases from coming into the United States as long as possible.” 

   On the other hand, Bernie Sanders is offering funds for Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. He is also proposing that citizens with Medicare can receive the health care they need during this crisis. Bernie has many things planned out for Americans throughout this period. Sanders is willing to provide $2000 per american for emergency funds, PER month. That is over 1.4E13 trillion dollar per month. Unlike Bernie, Trump has not come out with any beneficial proposals for Americans.

   State officials have provided many free testing stations to ensure that we keep the numbers down. The Commonwealth Fund  stipulates, “On March 18, Congress passed the Families First Coronavirus Response Act, which includes provisions requiring health insurers to waive cost-sharing for COVID-19 testing services.” Officials have been working past the failures and declensions to provide what they think is best to create a healthy environment for all the residents of the USA.

   Developed vaccines are said to be “essential to stopping the spread of infection, reducing rates of morbidity and mortality, and preventing future outbreaks” by the U.S. Food and Drug. This SARS-CoV-2 vaccine is now being tested to see if it is an efficient solution. Candidates such as mRNA, shows that this vaccine increases protein in the body, now being tested on patients at Kaiser Permanente Washington Health Research Institute, Emory University and the NIH Clinical Center. 

Clinical trials have been generated left and right. “Canadian Institutes for Health Research-funded trial of colchicine—an anti-inflammatory drug commonly used to treat gout—for treating COVID-19” sponsored by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute is an additional form of solutions being tested. 

   All these institutes have been completing countless amounts of research to ensure the best vaccine or medication for those who are infected with the virus, or are wanting to prevent it. 

   Protection comes first in a world of infection. To learn more about Covid-19 and to answer any question visit the Center of Disease Control and Prevention.