Different responses to the Covid-19 Virus

This week we have seen a few different responses to the Covid-19 virus. Italy and Spain put their populations under lockdown. This was similar to what China had done during the first outbreak in Wuhan. In a lockdown, people are mostly not allowed to travel away from their homes. The American president banned all travel into America from Europe, and later from the U.K. and Ireland. However, the ban only applied to foreigners.

Australia and New Zealand had banned people coming from certain countries, but changed the regulations yesterday. Now, anyone coming in from overseas, no matter if they are foreigners or citizens, must self-isolate for two weeks. Also, for the time being, cruise ships are no longer allowed to come into the country.

This is a similar strategy to that used in Hong Kong, Singapore and Taiwan. These places have had good results in slowing the spread of the virus.

Vocabulary