[mugwump]

So WHO has finally declared an international healthcare emergency. Which changes absolutely nothing. It’s been one since the first h2h outside of China.

The human-to-human transmission in the US also means nothing...the new case is in the spouse of the confirmed Chicago infection. Your ears should perk up when there are reports of new infections with no known connection to a confirmed case. That means some undiscovered infection locus is out there.

The Ro, virulence, and future course of this disease are all unknowns with conflicting reports and prognostications.

The fact is nobody knows what is going to happen. The next month should give you a feeling for where this is going. It’s either going to start tapering off, in which case we have the equivalent of another bad case of the flu going around, or it’s going to explode.

So...frequent hand washing, increased avoidance of risky social interactions, and reasonable preps for the worst case, if it develops.