More Young People Are Dying From Coronavirus, WHO Warns

More young people are dying of the coronavirus, according to a new warning issued by the World Health Organization.

“What we are seeing in some countries is that there are individuals in their 30s, who are in their 40s and 50s who are in the ICU and who have died,” said Maria Van Kerkhove, head of WHO’s emerging diseases.

“It’s still pretty significant even if you don’t require hospitalization. Moderate disease still includes pneumonia.”

Not all younger victims have underlying health conditions. In Italy, 10 to 15 percent of patients in intensive care are under 50, and in Korea, one in six deaths are of those under the age of 60.

Although it was initially reported those most likely to die were elderly or those with underlying health issues, The CDC reported nearly 20 percent of severe cases were 20-44 years old in the U.S.

The “dismissive attitude” that only old or the already sick people would have to worry about death or hospitalization has caused young people to shrug off the pandemic, says Mike Ryan, executive director of WHO emergencies program.

“We collectively have been living in a world where we’ve tried to convince ourselves that this disease is mild in young people and more severe in older people, and that’s where the problem is,” he said.

NY Post