from ZeroHedge:

Summary:

• WHO declares Covid-19 is a pandemic


• Congressional doctor says up to


• First death in Indonesia


• Washington State to ban events over 200


• ‘Waffle House’ employee in Atlanta confirmed


• Chicago cancels St. Paddy’s Day parade


• NY sends in National Guard

• IADB cancels meeting in Colombia as virus spreads across Latin America


• Mnuchin says first part of virus stimulus plan will be ready in 2 days


• Dr. Fauci warns virus 10x more deadly than flu and could infect millions if not handled early


• FEMA evacuates Atlanta office over coronavirus scare


• 3 Boeing workers test positie


• Washington DC advises cancellation or postponement of all gatherings with more than 1,000 people


• Harvard to prorate room and board for students


• US cases surpass 1,000


• UK Health Minister catches virus


• Ireland, Bulgaria, Sweden report first deaths


• Connecticut declares state of emergency


• UK total hits 456 following largest daily jump on record (83 new cases)


• Global cases pass 120,000


• South Korea reports new outbreak in call center


• Japan reportedly planning to declare state of emergency

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Update (1350ET): Follow the WHO’s major admission just a few minutes ago, which took the air out of a modest market rally as stocks moved off their session lows, we suspect that Wednesday will be remembered as a critical day in the development of the outbreak outside Asia.

We’ve heard no shortage of alarming predictions today – remember earlier when Merkel said up to 70% of Germans might catch the virus, or Dr. Fauci’s warning that “millions” of Americans could contract it if the US doesn’t act quickly – and Axios has just brought us one more: It reports, citing two sources briefing on the meeting, that Congress’ in-house doctor told Capitol Hill staffers at a close-door meeting this week that he expects 75-150 million people in the US,  roughly one-third of the country, to contract the coronavirus.

And here’s Axios telling us “why it matters”:

Why it matters: That estimate, which is in line with other projections from health experts, underscores the potential seriousness of this outbreak even as the White House has been downplaying its severity in an attempt to keep public panic at bay.

Dr. Brian Monahan, the attending physician of the U.S. Congress, told Senate chiefs of staff, staff directors, administrative managers and chief clerks from both parties on Tuesday that they should prepare for the worst, and offered advice on how to remain healthy.

He added that 80% of people who contract the virus will ultimately be fine.

As Axios also reminds us, statistical modeling from Harvard epidemiologist Marc Lipsitch, have said that somewhere between 20% and 60% of adults worldwide might catch the virus.

During an interview with CNBC following the declaration from the WHO,

“The epidemic is always further ahead than what you perceive at the moment,” Dr. Scott Gottlieb said.

It’s possible that we have thousands of cases here possibly tens of thousands,” Dr. Gottlieb said.

In other news, Reuters reports that the White House is weighing travel bans against Italians and other Europeans.

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Update (1230ET): With WHO’s major funding partner China perhaps having turned the corner, WHO Chief Tedros has finally decided to declare Covid-19 a Pandemic…

Read More @ ZeroHedge.com