On June 27, 2020, an interesting article in the New York Times tells the story of how health officials dismissed the risk of symptomless transmission of the coronavirus. The article also says health officials pushed “misleading and contradictory claims in the face of mounting evidence” about the ability of people without symptoms to spread the coronavirus. Of course, how the virus spreads impacts the economy, which in turn impacts the businesses that valuation experts need to appraise.
Missed the boat: Back on April 28, 2020, healthcare finance and valuation expert Mark Dietrich (Mark O. Dietrich CPA, PC) pointed out asymptomatic transmission during a BVR webinar, saying that “many have seemed to miss the boat,” including the World Health Organization, individuals, and governments who were making decisions. A case reported in Germany back in late January revealed that an individual who seemed perfectly healthy spread the disease to someone else. Until then, scientists had believed that only people with symptoms could spread the coronavirus. Despite the German case and other evidence, the risk of symptomless spreading was downplayed during March and April, says the Times article. In the meantime, the virus continued its “silent spread” throughout the world.
Dietrich is the author of a new BVR briefing: “The Real Story of COVID-19 for Valuation and Litigation Experts.” If you are a subscriber to the BVResearch Pro platform, you already have this new briefing in your library!