AMA president urges stay at home and shelter in place orders in holdout states

American Medical Association President Patrice A. Harris called for expanding stay-at-home and shelter-in-place orders to address the threat of COVID-19 virus during an online National Press Club Newsmaker event Tuesday.

AMA President Patrice A. Hattis

She enumerated what is known of the virus, which has produced a worldwide pandemic. It is transmitted primarily by person to person close contact, she said. Anyone, she emphasized, can be infected, but seniors and those with chronic health conditions are more vulnerable to serious illness.

Many carriers have not been tested and may be asymptomatic so they pose a risk to others. The most effective tool to limit transmission is physical distance, she said.

“Every state or city that has not implemented a stay at home or shelter in place order needs to do so immediately,” she said. “This is our best chance to slow the spread of the virus."

Medical workers cannot carry the burden alone, “everyone has a role to play in containing this pandemic,” she said.

She used history to make her point. During the flu epidemic of 1918, Philadelphia held a parade after their first case was identified, but St. Louis shut down two days after their first case, she said. Consequently, St. Louis had a death rate half that of Philadelphia’s, Harris said.

She cited a retrospective study of the flu pandemic published in the Journal of the American Medical Association that found measures such as school closures resulted in lower death rates.

The AMA, Harris said, “calls on all elected officials to put evidence and facts at the core of their decision making.”

She added: “Some have called the response to the pandemic a 'war,' but we must ensure that it is a war against a virus not against science."

The country has met health challenges before, such as polio, AIDS and widespread smoking, which required changes in policies and behavior based on science and evidence, Harris said.

Club President Michael Freedman posed questions submitted online before and during the online Newsmaker.

Harris, a psychiatrist, answered questions addressing the psychological burden placed on children and adults by the pandemic and the measures to contain it.

She advised adults not to ask children questions that presumed feelings, such as, “I know you are afraid,” but to ask questions such as, “How do you feel about this?” Answers to children should be “age appropriate.”

Children are watching, so adults should be careful not to convey anxiety, she advised.

For adults themselves, she counseled, “Take a moment and breathe.” She further advised limited TV and social media, walking outside if the option is available, exercise even if it has to be indoors, good sleep and healthy eating.

Since the pandemic response has brought a huge disruption to routines, she said it would be a good idea to develop new routines.

Responding to questions on the role of journalism, Harris said the crisis heightens the need for objective journalism providing credible accurate information.

“The media is going a great job, making sure the facts are there,” she said.

She reminded her audience that there will be a normal after the pandemic, but it will be a “new normal.”

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