<center>''See [[coronavirus]] for a more substantive explanation.''</center>
'''[[Coronavirus]] disease 2019''', or '''COVID-19''' (also , unfortunately, called '''Chinese Virus''', '''Wuhan Virus''', '''[[Kung Fu|kung flu''']],<ref>[https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/504224-trump-again-refers-to-coronavirus-as-kung-flu Trump again refers to coronavirus as 'kung flu']</ref> and the '''CCP flu'''), is the name of the disease caused by a novel strain of the [[coronavirus]] (SARS-CoV-2 or 2019-nCoV) identified as originating in [[Wuhan, China]] in late November and early December 2019.<ref>[https://www.scmp.com/news/china/society/article/3074991/coronavirus-chinas-first-confirmed-covid-19-case-traced-back Coronavirus: China’s first confirmed Covid-19 case traced back to November 17], Josephine Ma, 13 Mar, 2020. www.scmp.com</ref> The outbreak turned into a [[pandemic]], reaching every continent on the planet by March 2020. Genetic mapping suggests that the Wuhan virus is related to severe acute respiratory syndrome [[SARS-CoVid-1|(SARS) of 2002 and 2003]] as well as to the Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) of 2012 to the present. COVID-19 is considered highly infectious with an estimated basic reproduction number (R<sub>0</sub>) of 2.2. The mortality rate is 1.2%.<ref>[https://coronavirus.jhu.edu/data/mortality John Hopkins, 6 April, 2022]</ref> By comparison, the mortality rate for seasonal influenza is 0.1 percent, SARS was 9 to 10 percent, and MERS was 36 percent.<ref name="Fauci">Anthony S. Fauci, M.D., H. Clifford Lane, M.D., and Robert R. Redfield, M.D., "[https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMe2002387 Covid-19 — Navigating the Uncharted]," ''New England Journal of Medicine'', March 26, 2020.</ref> The numbers hospitalized due to Covid have been exaggeraged.<ref>https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2021/09/covid-hospitalization-numbers-can-be-misleading/620062/</ref> Nearly 1 million Americans have died.<ref>John Hopkins</ref>
Dr. Robert Redfield, former director of the [[Centers for Disease Control and Prevention]] (CDC), told [[CNN]] that he believes the virus escaped from the [[Wuhan Institute of Virology]] (WIV) lab in China. “I do not believe this somehow came from a bat to a human.”<ref>https://dailycaller.com/2021/03/26/coronavirus-robert-redfield-wuhan-institute-of-virology/</ref>
A great deal of research is being conducted on this virus and “Since Dec. 11, 2020, the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 Vaccine has been available under EUA [Emergency Use Authorization] in individuals 16 years of age and older, and the authorization was expanded to include those 12 through 15 years of age on May 10, 2021”.<ref>[https://www.fda.gov/news-events/press-announcements/fda-approves-first-covid-19-vaccine] FDA</ref> Medication in current use include the antiviral drugs lopinavir–ritonavir, interferon-1β, the dangerous and expensive RNA polymerase inhibitor remdesivir, and [[hydroxychloroquine]].<ref name="Fauci" />
Because of the [[virus]]' s ability to replicate exponentially it is difficult to calculate the total number of people infected, as well as a definitive mortality rate. Quantifying total infections is hampered by the number of test kits available, as well as trained personnel to interpret the results of a novel, previously unknown, virus. The exponential rate of infections can overwhelm healthcare facilities and healthcare givers. With only experimental treatments available for a previously unknown virus, experts recommend persons with symptoms remain home so as to not infect others, or even if your symptoms are unrelated to COVID-19 you could become infected at hospitals where carriers likely are present.
Many carriers of the virus show no symptoms at all, and may never show symptoms. Social distancing, remaining at least 6 feet away from other people, is recommended to avoid infection and for an untested, [[asymptomatic]] (showing no symptoms) carrier to avoid spreading the virus. Each survivor of the virus must build immunity through antibodies. Therefore, the size of a person's initial exposure to the virus is crucial.