COZ OF DEATH
Dr. Oz suggests schools should reopen amid coronavirus outbreak because ‘only 2-3% more people’ could die
DR Mehmet Oz thinks schools should reopen because only a small percentage of people will die from coronavirus.
The celebrity medic said “schools are a very appetizing opportunity” and reopening them would get America's “mojo back" as the death toll topped 31,000 Thursday.
Speaking about thousands of potential deaths, Oz told Fox News: “I just saw a nice piece in The Lancet arguing the opening of schools may only cost us 2-3 percent, in terms of total mortality.
“Any, you know, any life is a life lost, but to get every child back into a school where they’re safely being educated, being fed, and making the most out of their lives, with the theoretical risk on the back side."
"That might be a tradeoff some folks would consider," he added, as , hospitals, and medical facilities grapple with the COVID body count.
Oz was most likely referring to the UK study referenced by The Lancet which concluded that school closures in the Britain “will reduce COVID-19 deaths by only 2-4 percent."
But a model put forward by the found that percentage combined with the projected deaths would actually result in thousands more fatalities.
Health experts, medics, top doc Anthony Fauci, state and local officials have urged people to adhere to the coronavirus guidelines to mitigate the spread of the killer bug, for which there is no cure or vaccine yet.
After receiving considerable push-back on social media, Dr Oz responded on saying he "misspoke."
"I’ve realized my comments on risks around opening schools have confused and upset people, which was never my intention," he said. "I misspoke."
But Oz recently questioned why Boston University closed for the fall semester.
“That really bothered me," . "How do you know right now in April ― before you even tried to reopen ― if you need to close down your school through the rest of this calendar year?
“You’re hurting people that you’re responsible for ... I am a doctor. I want you to be safer ― I want you to err on the side of being overly cautious.
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"But not at the expense of making decisions that don’t really serve us.”
His comments come as President Donald Trump is set to announced revised reopening guidelines for state governors on Thursday.
Trump has repeatedly said he is eager for the country to get back to work as infection rates level off in many areas while the national death toll rises.
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