AP: Trump, U.S. officials send mixed messages on virus risk here
“President Donald Trump and his chief economic adviser said Tuesday that the new coronavirus is under control in the U.S., even as the government’s top disease fighters warned Americans to prepare for an outbreak here. The mixed messages came as the stock market tumbled for a second straight day and lawmakers of both political parties questioned whether the White House’s request for $2.5 billion in virus response funding will be enough to prepare the nation…” (Alonso-Zaldivar et al., 2/26).

New York Times: CDC Officials Warn of Coronavirus Outbreaks in the U.S.
“Federal health officials starkly warned on Tuesday that the new coronavirus will almost certainly spread in the United States, and that hospitals, businesses, and schools should begin making preparations. ‘It’s not so much of a question of if this will happen anymore but rather more of a question of exactly when this will happen,’ Dr. Nancy Messonnier, director of the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, said in a news briefing…” (Belluck et al., 2/25).

STAT: CDC expects ‘community spread’ of coronavirus, as top official warns disruptions could be ‘severe’
“…The CDC’s messaging seemed to be at odds with the position of the World Health Organization, which reiterated Tuesday that countries could stop transmission chains if they acted swiftly and aggressively. Bruce Aylward, a senior WHO official who led a recent international mission to China to see how that country had dealt with Covid-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus, said the lesson from China was that the impact of the new virus can be dramatically curtailed. But countries have to be prepared to wage a full-on assault, he insisted…” (Thielking/Branswell, 2/25).

Additional coverage of U.S. and international messaging surrounding the COVID-19 outbreak is available from The Hill (2), MedPage Today, MSNBC, NPR, POLITICO (2), Reuters, Science Speaks, USA TODAY, Washington Post, and Washington Times.