People with pre-existing conditions and older Americans are at the greatest risk for life-threatening symptoms from acquiring the Coronaviruscoronavirus co·ro·na·vi·rus : any of a family (Coronaviridae) of single-stranded RNA viruses that have a lipid envelope studded with club-shaped projections, infect birds and many mammals including humans, and include the causative agents of MERS, SARS, and COVID-19 and dying due to COVID-19COVID-19 \ ˈkō-vid-nīn-ˈtēn : a mild to severe respiratory illness that is caused by a coronavirus (Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 of the genus Betacoronavirus), is transmitted chiefly by contact with infectious material (such as respiratory droplets), and is characterized especially by fever, cough, and shortness of breath and may progress to pneumonia and respiratory failure. disease. According to the Kaiser Family Health Foundation, more than one-third or 90 million of the 246 million adults in the United States have a higher risk of serious illness if they do become infected due to their age or underlying medical condition. In fact, eight out of 10 deaths in the United States from the the infectious respiratory diseaserespiratory disease re-sp(ə-)rə-ˌtȯr-ē | \ di-ˈzēz A type of disease that affects the lungs and other parts of the respiratory system. ... Respiratory diseases include asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), pulmonary fibrosis, pneumonia, and lung cancer. Also called lung disorder and pulmonary disease. have been people 65 and older.
Older adults are more likely to have other chronic health conditions that make fighting COVID-19 more difficult. The elderly also generally suffer weakened immune systems that make it harder to fight infectioninfection in·fec·tion | \ in-ˈfek-shən a : the state produced by the establishment of one or more pathogenic agents (such as a bacteria, protozoans, or viruses) in or on the body of a suitable host b : a disease resulting from infection.
Health conditions that have been indicated as lessening the body’s ability to fight viruses and infection include heart diseaseheart disease : an abnormal condition of the heart or of the heart and circulation (such as coronary heart disease, arrhythmia, or heart-valve defect) and hypertensionhypertension hy·per·ten·sion | \ ˌhī-pər-ˈten(t)-shən 1 : abnormally high blood pressure and especially arterial blood pressure 2 : the systemic condition accompanying high blood pressure, Diabetes type 1 and type 2, and lung diseaselung disease : Refers to many disorders affecting the lungs, such as asthma, COPD, infections like influenza, pneumonia and tuberculosis, lung cancer, and many other breathing problems. Some lung diseases can lead to respiratory failure., all of which are more common when a person is of advanced age or obese. One reason is that many of the medications that treat symptoms of chronic conditions also suppress the person’s immune systemimmune system : the bodily system that protects the body from foreign substances, cells, and tissues by producing the immune response and that includes especially the thymus, spleen, lymph nodes, special deposits of lymphoid tissue (as in the gastrointestinal tract and bone marrow), macrophages, lymphocytes including the B cells and T cells, and antibodies..
One Quarter of Elderly Reside in California, Florida and Texas
Italy was hit hard by Coronavirus in part because the population was older: 23% of its residents are 65 or older.
One quarter of older Americans live in California, Florida and Texas. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis issued a statewide stay-at-home order on April 1, while Texas has so far not issued statewide stay-at-home restrictions.
Florida’s projected population in the 2020 U.S. Census includes 21% of people 65 or older, up from the current rate of 20.5%, which is the second highest next to Maine at 20.6%. The Sunshine State currently has nearly 7,000 recorded cases of COVID-19.
Georgia, Illinois, Michigan, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, and Pennsylvania account for another one-quarter of Americans age 65 or older.
Reported U.S. Coronavirus Cases
The majority of people who become infected with coronavirus are not expected to become seriously ill.
The total number of U.S. coronavirus cases is reported at more than 190,000 on John Hopkin’s Coronavirus Map while as of April 1 the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has tracked 186,101 coronavirus cases reported to the CDC.
Worldometer, a free reference website run by an international team of developers, researchers and volunteers, has the count at 205,035 U.S. coronavirus cases.
Total U.S. coronavirus deaths are above 3,600, according to the CDC, and more than 44,000 COVID-19 deaths have been recorded worldwide.
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