By February, the U.S. Coronavirus deaths could double to about 400,000, according to a model from the University of Washington School of Medicine’s Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation. The model predicts daily deaths will be around 23,000 in mid-January.

Another former director of the CJC, Dr. Ric. Richard Besser said, however, that estimates have not been put in stone, and what people do could have a big impact.

Guidance such as wearing a mask, social distance, hand washing and case investigation means that “we can have a different way and we can take it under control,” he said.

Impressions are gained in a fluid, global, diffused way

Officials are searching for coronavirus infections and deaths, but Frieden said that number could be much lower.

The actual number of deaths from coronavirus in the United States is more than fifty million, Freden said Saturday.

Part of the problem in determining the true effect is how death is listed on death certificates, especially for elderly patients who are more likely to have other health-related problems such as coronavirus infection. Often other health conditions are listed as the cause of death, he said.

“If you die of cancer, and you also have diabetes, you die of cancer,” Frieden explained. “If you died from covid, and you also have diabetes, you died from covid.”

He said the probability of infection is close to 4 million people.

“You don’t get sick from all this, but you can spread it to anyone who dies or spread it to another who dies.” “That’s why we should all recognize that we are together in this. There is only one enemy, and that is the virus.”

Re-trust vaccines and health agencies

As researchers rush to develop a coronavirus vaccine, health experts said Saturday that confidence and accessibility around any potential vaccine need to be improved.

“For a vaccine to really work, it has become not only safe and effective, but also accessible and reliable. And that is why it is so important that it is not politicized and not seen by any political party or political person.” Said Frieden. “Getting vaccinated there is a big deal.”

Opinion polls show that the CDC is not publicly trusted with information surrounding the coronavirus.

The way to regain confidence is “first and foremost, to say the least,” Julie Gerberding said during the townhall.

“Americans can tolerate a really tough truth, but it has to come from a reliable and trustworthy source,” Gerbirding said. “One of the reasons we Americans are so concerned is that they are listening to different political leaders. We have not consolidated and cascaded messages from trusted sources.”

He reiterated what other former CDC leaders had said during the townhall: Transparency is key.

He said, “It has become very difficult to go back to a situation where people think we really have their best interests. The good news is that science is on our side.”

A wake-up call for politicians and public health officials

Former CDC directors warned that both politicians and public health officials need to take the virus seriously for the sake of the people.

President Donald Trump said Americans should not let the fear of coronavirus dominate their lives, but former director Dr. Jeffrey Coplan said the country should be “absolutely” feared.

“While your leadership is working against you in this virus, there is an ally of the virus that makes it a very strong contender for further destruction,” Coplan said.

Copla said he believes the epidemic will serve as a wake-up call for politicians and public health officials.

“I am very hopeful that we will see strong state and local health departments, working with a strong CDC – that pays more attention to a particularly advanced surveillance system, early detection of problems, and then approach to emulsifying them, He said.