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Comment by stonemetal12 | Hacker News Reader

Where did you get your 0.5% from?

According to Johns Hopkins in the UK more than 15% of those who get it die, for the US it is 3.7%. The link says those numbers were updated this morning so they are current.

https://coronavirus.jhu.edu/data/mortality

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How can you still push lies like that? The mortality rate is nowhere near 15%. Rather within 1%. Case fatality ratio is a ratio to confirmed cases, which in a country where people have been told to stay at home if they are sick and not get tested for most of the peak of the pandemic is a massive underestimation of “people who get it”. Spreading false information like that is irresponsible.

I didn't see a reference for your number so I went looking for data, that is what I found. Hence I asked where your data came from.

>How can you still push lies like that?

Still? that is the first time I have posted that, so I not sure what you mean by still.

No I mean we are 6 months into this pandemic. I can understand people making this mistake in Feb or March. But by now there is no excuse. There is a lot of FUD being pushed by people on HN. In your case it may be an honest mistake but I am getting tired of people quoting numbers that are alarmist and just false.

Saying they're lying is kinda optimistic. Plenty of people don't know the difference.

Come on, we are not in March.

That makes it even sadder. I'm sure everyone had the choice to learn the actual level of danger (to the extent it's known) but believing in a higher mortality rate makes it easier to panic. And if you don't panic, you're seen as irresponsible and/or hating humanity.

There is “case fatality rate” and there is “infected fatality rate”. The CDC has estimated the IFR, but the value varies based on assumptions. https://www.google.com/amp/s/amp.usatoday.com/amp/5269331002

That percentage being higher only helps that guy's argument though

I don't mind if it does or it doesn't. I haven't seen a source for the 0.5%, everything I had seen had higher numbers, so I thought I would ask. But remember kids, not knowing, being curious, and asking questions is frowned upon on HN.

15% of those who test positive die. Most infected people are unlikely to be tested in the UK unless they are admitted to hospital.

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