Tom Bossert, Donald Trump’s former homeland security advisor, told NBC News today that due to the coronavirus outbreak, “We are 10 days from the hospitals getting creamed.”
In an op-ed published by The Washington Post, Bossert also stated, “officials must pull the trigger on aggressive interventions,” later adding, “Aggressive interventions put off and ease the peak burden on hospitals and other health-care infrastructure.”
Bossert specifically suggesting that “School closures, isolation of the sick, home quarantines of those who have come into contact with the sick, social distancing, telework and large-gathering cancellations must be implemented before the spread of the disease in any community reaches 1 percent.”
It’s now or never for the U.S. if it hopes to keep coronavirus from burning out of control https://t.co/wTKuVJ9hrF
— Thomas P. Bossert (@TomBossert) March 9, 2020
“If we fail to take action, we will watch our health-care system be overwhelmed,” he warned, “Starting now, public health messaging should be framed in light of this clear objective.”
Bossert was never replaced when he left the administration in 2018, and Trump eliminated the national security council jobs related to disease outbreaks.
According to The Washington Post, “Over the past 30 days, Trump and members of his administration have contradicted other Trump officials at least 14 times on various parts of the coronavirus response.”
Trump and his administration have received criticism for downplaying the outbreak.
Democratic candidate Joe Biden even told MSNBC’s Lawrence O’Donnell, “I wish he would just be quiet … Just let the experts speak,” in reference to the president’s responses on coronavirus.
Turbulent trading continued to roll Wall Street today and anxieties over the coronavirus failed to subside with an increase in U.S. deaths and New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo ratcheting up protective measures in his state.
Cuomo deployed National Guard troops to a health department command post in New Rochelle, a suburb of New York City where health officials have reported at least 108 cases of COVID-19 in the area.
While there have been no reported deaths in New York, neighboring New Jersey announced its first one: a man in his 60s in Bergen County.
The markets remained volatile a day after the Dow Jones shed 2,000 points — Wall Street’s worst day since the financial crash of 2008.
The Dow rallied before giving up most of its gain this afternoon.
The coronavirus outbreak has continued to rattle Italy, which extended the containment measures already in place in northern regions to the entire country, which has confirmed more than 10,140 cases.
The death toll in the country stands at more than 630 people.