One reason South Korea has apparently tamed the coronavirus is because it quickly tested tens of thousands of people for the virus. It makes the US a sad contrast. From Dr. David Brownstein at drbrownstein.com:
South Korea was one of the first countries affected by Coronavirus after China. Their first case occurred January 20, 2020. The number of cases remained low until February 18 when the country reported 31 new cases. A few days later hundreds more were confirmed and continued to rise. At that time, S. Korea had the highest number of COVID-19 patients outside of China. (1) By February 27, with a few hundred cases of COVID-19 reported, S. Korea had tested over 66,000 people while the US had tested just 445. (2)
How did this not spiral out of control like it has in the US? In later January, just after the first case, S. Korea procured a massive amount of tests. When the infection spread in February, S. Korean health agencies were quickly mobilized to test tens of thousands of exposed Koreans. In fact, they tested tens of thousands of patients and properly instituted quarantining and treatment.
That is a perfect example of how a national health service is supposed to function. We—especially the CDC–have a lot to learn from the Korean health agencies. How did this fare for the Korean citizens?
In the March 13, 2020 Korean Times it is reported that there are 7,869 cases of COVID-19. How many have died? Sixty-six people, mostly elderly patients with underlying illnesses have died so far. That means the death rate in Korea is 0.8% (66/7,869). This is still higher than the death rate for the flu in the US which is approximately 0.1%. However, this number is much lower than the 3-4% promoted by the media.
