Page 20 - 2021 White Paper
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1 White Paper on the Business Environment in China
was gaining strength in Europe for the first time, households, or were actually a population that
with an outbreak in Italy affecting more than 300 was stealthily driving this epidemic, would give
people. That prompted Emerson College to cancel response planners critical ammunition to use
a trip to Milan and Endicott College to offer to in the battle against the virus. At stake were
bring the study-abroad students home. The news decisions about policies that could be hugely
that hundreds of Massachusetts residents were disruptive to families and workplaces. Should
quarantined at home, however, highlighted the schools be closed to slow spread when the virus
challenges others could face if the virus spreads. enters new terrain, forcing parents to scramble
People were worried if a coronavirus outbreak for child care alternatives or stay home? Should
occurs, people would be forced to stay home to long-term care facilities discourage families from
slow the spread of illness. Family staples such as bringing young children to visit grandparents
toilet paper began flying off the shelves. Dr. Eric or other aging relatives? Though the evidence
Toner, a senior scholar with the Johns Hopkins suggested this virus doesn’t inflict severe disease
Center for Health Security, said that Covid-19 on children, there were reasons to believe
warned that outbreaks in the United States children were amplifying transmission. It’s a role
were likely and could be severe. But the risk to they play to devastating effect during flu season,
individuals was small. “For an individual who becoming ill and passing flu viruses on to their
is otherwise healthy, this is probably no more parents, grandparents, teachers, and caregivers.
dangerous to you than the flu,” Toner said. “But While the new virus is from a different viral
to the health care system this could be really family, its behavior was more like influenza than
as bad as or worse than a severe flu pandemic its coronavirus cousins, SARS and MERS, making
and it’s a threat to the elderly and people in long experts wonder if it is doing the same. Flu is clearly
ter m care facilities.” Elec tive surger ies star ted driven in part by schools. School closures could
being postponed. Dr. Irwin Redlener, director of become a reality if the US and other advanced
the National Center for Disaster Preparedness countries saw sustained transmission of the virus.
and professor health policy and management Initial predictions, which were backed up by data
at Columbia University, cautioned against from China, were reassuring. These viruses were
overreacting. It’s too soon to start stockpiling brutal on older adults — particularly the elderly.
cans of beans in the basement, he asserted; that But for some as yet unexplained reason, children
“creates an unnecessary amount of panic.” Taking appeared to be spared the worst of the disease
overly strong measures can do more harm than (Branswell and Thielking).
good. “If we overdo it, the other consequences
for the economy and education could be a very Viruses can strike one group more severely
u n fo r t u n a t e t h i n g,” R e d l e n e r s a i d . D r. N a h i d than another. The 1918 flu, which claimed 50
Bhadelia, assistant professor at Tufts University’s million lives worldwide, particularly affected young
Fletcher School and medical director of the Special adults. The Zika outbreak that raged through
Pathogens Unit at Boston University School of Brazil in 2015-2016 had an especially devastating
Medicine, has worked in Ebola treatment units effect on pregnant women, attacking the brains
in Africa. She noted that Ebola epidemic was of the fetuses they carried. This new coronavirus
devastating to West Africa — even though less appeared to get more dangerous with age. There
than one half of 1% of residents became ill. School seemed to be this threshold – very few cases
and business closings had more far-reaching were being reported by March 2020 below the
effec ts. “ That ’s really what pandemics do,” she age of 35 but people in their 40s to 80s suffered
said. “It’s a not a direct impact. It’s an indirect a mortality increase. A study that examined the
impact” (Freyer). first 45,000 known cases in China found that 80%
of the reported cases appeared to be mild. The
Among the many unknowns about the new other 20% of those diagnosed had moderate,
virus was the role children played in transmission severe, or critical symptoms, including a hard
of the virus that causes Covid-19 disease. Knowing time breathing, pneumonia, and organ failure.
whether kids were innocent bystanders, getting About 2.3% of overall infections were lethal.
infected if someone brings the virus into their Severe acute respiratory syndrome—commonly
20
was gaining strength in Europe for the first time, households, or were actually a population that
with an outbreak in Italy affecting more than 300 was stealthily driving this epidemic, would give
people. That prompted Emerson College to cancel response planners critical ammunition to use
a trip to Milan and Endicott College to offer to in the battle against the virus. At stake were
bring the study-abroad students home. The news decisions about policies that could be hugely
that hundreds of Massachusetts residents were disruptive to families and workplaces. Should
quarantined at home, however, highlighted the schools be closed to slow spread when the virus
challenges others could face if the virus spreads. enters new terrain, forcing parents to scramble
People were worried if a coronavirus outbreak for child care alternatives or stay home? Should
occurs, people would be forced to stay home to long-term care facilities discourage families from
slow the spread of illness. Family staples such as bringing young children to visit grandparents
toilet paper began flying off the shelves. Dr. Eric or other aging relatives? Though the evidence
Toner, a senior scholar with the Johns Hopkins suggested this virus doesn’t inflict severe disease
Center for Health Security, said that Covid-19 on children, there were reasons to believe
warned that outbreaks in the United States children were amplifying transmission. It’s a role
were likely and could be severe. But the risk to they play to devastating effect during flu season,
individuals was small. “For an individual who becoming ill and passing flu viruses on to their
is otherwise healthy, this is probably no more parents, grandparents, teachers, and caregivers.
dangerous to you than the flu,” Toner said. “But While the new virus is from a different viral
to the health care system this could be really family, its behavior was more like influenza than
as bad as or worse than a severe flu pandemic its coronavirus cousins, SARS and MERS, making
and it’s a threat to the elderly and people in long experts wonder if it is doing the same. Flu is clearly
ter m care facilities.” Elec tive surger ies star ted driven in part by schools. School closures could
being postponed. Dr. Irwin Redlener, director of become a reality if the US and other advanced
the National Center for Disaster Preparedness countries saw sustained transmission of the virus.
and professor health policy and management Initial predictions, which were backed up by data
at Columbia University, cautioned against from China, were reassuring. These viruses were
overreacting. It’s too soon to start stockpiling brutal on older adults — particularly the elderly.
cans of beans in the basement, he asserted; that But for some as yet unexplained reason, children
“creates an unnecessary amount of panic.” Taking appeared to be spared the worst of the disease
overly strong measures can do more harm than (Branswell and Thielking).
good. “If we overdo it, the other consequences
for the economy and education could be a very Viruses can strike one group more severely
u n fo r t u n a t e t h i n g,” R e d l e n e r s a i d . D r. N a h i d than another. The 1918 flu, which claimed 50
Bhadelia, assistant professor at Tufts University’s million lives worldwide, particularly affected young
Fletcher School and medical director of the Special adults. The Zika outbreak that raged through
Pathogens Unit at Boston University School of Brazil in 2015-2016 had an especially devastating
Medicine, has worked in Ebola treatment units effect on pregnant women, attacking the brains
in Africa. She noted that Ebola epidemic was of the fetuses they carried. This new coronavirus
devastating to West Africa — even though less appeared to get more dangerous with age. There
than one half of 1% of residents became ill. School seemed to be this threshold – very few cases
and business closings had more far-reaching were being reported by March 2020 below the
effec ts. “ That ’s really what pandemics do,” she age of 35 but people in their 40s to 80s suffered
said. “It’s a not a direct impact. It’s an indirect a mortality increase. A study that examined the
impact” (Freyer). first 45,000 known cases in China found that 80%
of the reported cases appeared to be mild. The
Among the many unknowns about the new other 20% of those diagnosed had moderate,
virus was the role children played in transmission severe, or critical symptoms, including a hard
of the virus that causes Covid-19 disease. Knowing time breathing, pneumonia, and organ failure.
whether kids were innocent bystanders, getting About 2.3% of overall infections were lethal.
infected if someone brings the virus into their Severe acute respiratory syndrome—commonly
20
