As the novel coronavirus spreads in the United States, the nation's response to the outbreak has moved from a containment phase to a mitigation phase, US Surgeon General Dr. Jerome Adams told CNN's Jake Tapper on "State of the Union” today.
"Initially, we had a posture of containment so that we could give people time to prepare for where we are right now. We’re shifting into a mitigation phase, which means that we’re helping communities understand you’re going to see more cases. Unfortunately, you’re going to see more deaths but that doesn’t mean that we should panic," Adams said.
When Tapper asked Adams about some top White House officials claiming the virus has been contained, Adams said, "Well, this is a novel virus. It’s a new situation and the messaging, quite frankly, is hard."
"The first thing you want to try to do is contain the virus — and some parts of the country have contained it, meaning they’re preventing spread into their communities in the first place," Adams said. "Once you know it’s in your community, you want to take the steps to prevent spread within the community and to keep those most at risk safe."