Coronavirus has crossed the nation, striking in virtually all states as it has around the world.
And now, according to The Washington Post, it has reached a grim milestone, albeit one that's sure to give way to many more in days to come.
The contagious illness has now killed at least 100 people in the U.S.
(One secondary milestone: West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice on Tuesday night said the state has reported its first positive case of the new coronavirus, meaning that all 50 states have now confirmed cases, The Associated Press reported.)
The toll may seem small compared to the thousands who've succumbed worldwide. But they do shed light on what's still to come in this pandemic. And The Post has tracked all known U.S. deaths, while also crunching data from states, localities and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The news organization's report found that:
- Many of the first 100 appear to have had underlying health conditions, whether it was kidney dysfunctions, diabetes or other ailments.
- Nearly all were older than 60, and about 45 percent were older than 80.
Though the report did not know how all had contracted the disease, what is known is that a third lived in residential care facilities, like the Life Care Center of Kirkland, Washington, near Seattle, which fast became a hub of that state's coronavirus epidemic. The paper noted that there alone, 27 of the facility’s 120 residents have died.
But the illness' toll in such places was referred to by one authority as a ‘canary in a coal mine’ situation.” Fred Buckner, an attending physician at the University of Washington Medical Center, told The Post: “I suspect it’s going to be taking off in other locations just like it is in the Seattle area. There’s no reason not to think that. Obviously, that means more deaths.”
The data adds urgency to efforts by many states and municipalities across the country to try to break the illness' "stride' through strategies like social distancing, shutdowns of schools and businesses, and sheltering in place, as is the case for millions of people in the San Francisco Bay area.
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