Discussion: Can advances in testing counter surging COVD-19 cases?
A member of the Florida National Guard directs vehicles at a COVID-19 testing site at the Miami Beach Convention Center during the coronavirus outbreak, Sunday, July 12, 2020, in Miami Beach, Floria. Florida on Sunday reported the largest single-day increase in positive coronavirus cases in any one state since the beginning of the pandemic.
The United States was grappling with the world’s worst coronavirus outbreak on Monday as Florida shattered the national record for a state’s largest single-day increase in new confirmed cases. The World Health Organization warned that the pandemic is worsening globally and that “there will be no return to the old normal for the foreseeable future.”
The WHO director-general said that while numerous countries have now brought their previously explosive outbreaks under control, namely those in Europe and Asia, “too many countries are headed in the wrong direction.”
Without naming specific politicians, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus also chastised political leaders for their “mixed messages” amid the coronavirus outbreaks, saying that they are “undermining the most critical ingredient of any response: trust.”
“If the basics aren’t followed, there is only one way this pandemic is going to go,” Tedros said. “It’s going to get worse and worse and worse.”
Related discussion: Are countries prepared for a coronavirus surge?
The surge in coronavirus cases around the world serves as a reminder of the urgent need for more testing. But those who can get a test must sometimes wait days for the results.
As part of our regular discussion series on the coronavirus, The World’s Elana Gordon will be taking your questions and moderating a discussion with Dr. Michael Mina, assistant professor of epidemiology at Harvard’s T.H. Chan School of Public Health about the latest advances in COVID-19 testing.
This discussion was presented jointly by The Forum at the Harvard T.H. Chan School.
The Associated Press contributed to this article.