![Coronavirus death toll mounts in China as U.S. braces for long fight, more cases.](https://townsquare.media/site/667/files/2020/02/gettyimages-1206708040-594x594.jpg?w=980&q=75)
Coronavirus death toll mounts in China as U.S. braces for long fight, more cases.
Rik Heller is an expert on the spread of infectious disease. He is also the founder of Wello, the first hands-free, self-service temperature screening device. He's been in contact with U.S. health officials to help contain the virus.
Coronavirus death toll mounts in China as U.S. braces for long fight, more cases.
Steve Gruber: Rick welcome to the program.
Rik Heller: Good morning.
Steve Gruber: Good to have you here. So give me your assessment of where we are today with what's going on in China. What's really happening? Not what we're being told but what you think is really happening. And what's happening here in the US. How big is this threat?
Rik Heller: You know, it's here. It's real. Yes, as we also know it's very small and proportioned flu. We're losing about 25,000 so far Americans to to influenza and here we are at probably 50 or 60,000 sufferers of coronavirus, maybe 1200 guest 1500 deaths as a result of it. So the current status is is that it's growing and then it could approach as contagious and as proliferate as the flu is worldwide.
Steve Gruber So is this what is this easier to spread around or about the same as the flu you you mentioned the flu couple days and I realized the flu takes thousands of lives.
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