The Andhra Pradesh State Government, on Wednesday, released a demographic based on the age group of COVID-19 patients in the state. Contrary to popular belief, the age group of people affected the most is under 40 years of age. While individuals in the age bracket of 21-40 years form 48% of the COVID-19 patients in Andhra Pradesh, the next group that is largely affected by COVID-19 is between the ages of 41-60 years. The government released the official statistics on 8 April 2020 and urged the citizens to stay home during the pandemic.
With the gradual increase in #COVID19 cases in Andhra Pradesh, majority of the population that got affected is below 40 years. We request people of all age groups to #StayHomeStaySafe pic.twitter.com/5nu69od3OA
— ArogyaAndhra (@ArogyaAndhra) April 8, 2020
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A similar pattern seems to have emerged across India too. As per information from the Ministry of Health, 42% of the affected population in India is between 21-40 years; and 33% of the affected group falls in the age group of 41-60 years. This trend is extremely close to the situation in Andhra Pradesh, which has reported 348 cases of COVID-19 so far.
The World Health Organisation addressed the emergence of this new pattern earlier this week. Mike Ryan, Executive Director of WHO’s Emergency Program. stated that it is now imperative for people of all age groups to be extremely careful, as the virus seems to be affecting people under fifty years with the same severity as that of the elderly. The Director stated that the earlier perception of only senior citizens falling prey to the novel coronavirus stands untrue, as reports across the world have begun to prove otherwise.
Addressing the world governments from Geneva, the WHO experts cited cases in Italy, China, South Korea, and parts of Europe where people between 30-50 years have died due to the virus. Explaining about the fatality rate further, Maria van Kerkhove, WHO’s technical lead of COVID-19 response, said that those succumbing to the virus are those suffering from pre-existing, underlying conditions.
The WHO experts have stated that people across the world must stop believing that they may not be affected adversely by the virus, in a bid to reassure themselves. Director-General of WHO – Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus appealed to young people to stay at home, as they aren’t invincible to COVID-19.
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