And Japanese citizens wonder why no news stations were reporting the good news. 

With all the news of coronavirus infections, it’s easy to get swept up in the panic and swarm the local stores buying up all the masks and toilet paper and things you can do when stuck at home. But the fact of the matter is the disease has only infected barely a fraction of the world’s population, and of those infected, most recover without any serious health problems, and some don’t experience any symptoms at all, and so coronavirus might not be as terrible as the media frenzy could be making you think.

Take, for example, the case of the Princess Cruise ship that anchored off of Yokohama last month. When it was discovered that a passenger on board had contracted the disease, the ship and its guests were forced to remain in quarantine in the port of Yokohama for more than two weeks. During that time, more than 700 passengers tested positive for the virus, according to the New York Times.

But what hasn’t gotten nearly as much attention is that nearly half of those people have recovered from the disease, and had been safely released from the hospital by March 7, according to Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who spoke in front of the Budget Committee of the upper house of the Diet. Furthermore, 20 of the patients who were in serious condition are now experiencing only mild to moderate symptoms and on the road to recovery.

Abe made a point to make this announcement because of what he felt is a lack of media coverage about any of the people recovering from the disease, including the 325 passengers of the Princess Cruise ship who have been released from the hospital. He also made an effort to stress that, “According to experts, the majority of those infected with the virus experience mild symptoms, and there are many cases of patients completely recovering.”

▼ “Another case of coronavirus? Guess we’ll need to buy another pack of toilet paper.”

Japanese Twitter users were relieved to hear the news, but expressed frustration at the general lack of information about recovery rates of the illness:

“Why haven’t they shown any of this positive news on TV?”
“The TV news just fans the flames. Honestly, there’s no point in watching it.”
“There really is no reporting about what happens after people test positive for the virus, is there? I’m glad they recovered.”
“They really need to report the good news too.”
“The original point of the media is to report all news equally, both good and bad. Besides, it’s sort of rude to the medical professionals working so hard to treat the patients if they don’t report about the recoveries.”
“If all they report is news of infections, people will lose control of themselves and gradually our economy will crash. The media really needs to report on those recovering, too.”

Perhaps the media will get the message and start reporting positive news regarding coronavirus, or perhaps they won’t, but in the meantime, please rest assured that the world is not, in fact, heading toward an apocalypse, and therefore everyone can stop hoarding hand sanitizer, bottled water, and anti-bacterial wipes. There’s really no need to panic; just keep washing your hands regularly, try not to touch your face, and if instructed to stay home, take advantage of some free manga and anime to pass the time!

Source: Livedoor News/Jiji Tsushinha via Hachima Kiko
Top image: Pakutaso
Insert images: Pakutaso (1, 2)
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