WHO Officially Calls Coronavirus a Pandemic

World Health Organization officials said the spread of the coronavirus across more than 100 countries now qualifies as a global pandemic, confirming what many epidemiologists have been saying for weeks, the New York Times reports.

From a statement: “Pandemic is not a word to use lightly or carelessly. It is a word that, if misused, can cause unreasonable fear, or unjustified acceptance that the fight is over, leading to unnecessary suffering and death.”