Science Communication in Times of Crisis

Officials within the U.S. government first became aware of the coronavirus outbreak as a potential major health emergency and national security issue on or around January 1, 2020. The first confirmed U.S. case was announced by CDC on January 21, 2020. By early March, when cases of the virus were rapidly spreading globally as well as in the U.S., the WHO declared COVID-19 a pandemic and President Trump declared it a National Emergency. Even though that was publicly announced in the U.S., both the