The Global Spread of COVID-19

March 4, 2020

Cases of coronavirus, or COVID-19, have now spread to at least 75 countries, infecting more than 100,000 people across the globe—most in China, the epicenter of the outbreak.

With concerns about the disease rising, in this Call with the Experts podcast RAND researchers answer a wide range of questions about the crisis:

• Jennifer Bouey, the Tang Chair in China Policy Studies at RAND, is an epidemiologist whose research focuses on global health strategies and the social determinants of health.
• Courtney Gidengil is a senior physician policy researcher who is board-certified in both general pediatrics and pediatric infectious diseases.
• Mahshid Abir is a senior physician policy researcher whose research focuses on hospital surge capacity and the effects of overcrowding at medical facilities.
• Andrew Mulcahy is a senior policy researcher who studies prescription drug and health care payment policy.
• Lori Uscher-Pines is a senior policy researcher whose work focuses on health care delivery via telemedicine, as well as emergency preparedness and response.
• Elizabeth Petrun Sayers is a behavioral and social scientist who researches how traditional and new media shape risk perceptions and health behaviors.

Jeffrey Hiday from the RAND Office of Media Relations moderates.