New data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention showed that the new coronavirus is sending younger patients to intensive care units around the country, The New York Times reports.
Although the coronavirus has disproportionately killed older patients, the CDC reports that about half of patients in ICUs are under the age of 65.
The data also showed that nearly 40% of patients that have been hospitalized for the coronavirus were between the ages of 20 and 54.
“I think everyone should be paying attention to this,” said Stephen Morse, a professor of epidemiology at Columbia University, told The Times. “It’s not just going to be the elderly. There will be people age 20 and up. They do have to be careful, even if they think that they’re young and healthy.”
Trump administration warns younger people:
"You yourself could be in harm's way. You're not out of danger," warned Dr. Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. "You [also] have a responsibility ― a societal responsibility ― to protect the vulnerable."
Dr. Deborah Birx, the coordinator of the White House task force, said young people need to protect themselves to protect others.
“You have the potential then to spread it to someone who does have a condition that none of us knew about, and cause them to have a disastrous outcome,” she said.
Spring breakers descend on Florida:
The news comes as spring breakers descend on Florida, which has a large population of retirees.
“If I get corona, I get corona. At the end of the day, I’m not going to let it stop me from partying,” one spring breaker told CBS News. “I’ve been waiting, we’ve been waiting for Miami spring break for a while. About two months we’ve had this trip planned, two, three months, and we’re just out here to having a good time.”
Though Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has refused to shut down the state’s beaches, Florida Sen. Rick Scott urged everyone to “get off the beach.”
"Unless you can figure out how to completely be isolated from anybody else, I mean, this is -- individuals have to take responsibility and every, every level of government has to be very clear, don't be on the beach unless you can be somehow completely by yourself,” he said.
