Federal health officials said Tuesday that the spread of the coronavirus is "inevitable" in the U.S., despite the low-key response and reassurances from Donald Trump and his administration.
Anne Schuchat, principal deputy director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said Tuesday an afternoon press conference, "We believe the immediate risk here in the United States remains low, and we're working hard to keep that risk low."
But earlier in the day, another CDC official had a more dire warning. Nancy Messonnier, the director of the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases at the CDC, said, "Ultimately, we expect we will see community spread in the United States. It's not a question of if this will happen, but when this will happen, and how many people in this country will have severe illnesses."
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