Johnson said people with “the most serious health conditions” should be “shielded” from social contacts for 12 weeks, starting this weekend. But Johnson said Monday the number of U.K. cases was starting to rise rapidly and “without drastic action” they could double every five or six days. Johnson also said the government would no longer give emergency-services support to large gatherings, though he did not ban them outright. The U.K. strategy has been based on the presumption that most people will eventually get the virus. Britain’s goal is to slow the spread of the infection so the country’s overstretched National Health Service is not overwhelmed, while protecting those most at risk of serious illness — the elderly and people with serious health problems.-AP

Source: The Standard March 17, 2020 11:15 UTC