Community Times Magazine_2020-04-01

The Community Times Magazine April 2020 -Page 12 Rep. Tom Rice Talks Coronavirus and Race Relations in District 7 By Stacy M. Brown Tom Rice, South Carolina's United States Representative for the Seventh District, wants his constituents to know that if they believe they are showing symptoms of the novel coronavirus – or COVID-19 – they should immediately call the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Rice said he and fellow Republicans are working around the clock to ensure safety for all residents. "The spread of coronavirus has people justifiably on edge. The headlines are scary. As the virus has spread outside of China, the World Health Organization has raised its threat assess- ment," Rice stated. "The CDC has determined that the United States will see an increase in cases and spread from person to person. It is likely to get worse before it gets better." Rice continued: "But that being said, the risk of infection in the United States today remains very low. There are only 60 confirmed cases in a nation of over 300,000,000 people. Forty-four of those came from one cruise ship. No one in the United States has died from this disease. In 70 to 80 percent of cases, the symptoms are mild." "The Administration is working with the various agencies, including the CDC, the National Institute of Health, and the Food and Drug Administration to ensure the safety and well-being of all Americans. Rest assured that a bipartisan Congress stands ready to provide necessary resources." "Everyone can help prevent the spread of any illness, including Coronavirus, by taking a few simple precautions: wash your hands, avoid touch- ing your face, cover your mouth when you cough or sneeze, stay up to date on vaccinations and stay home if you feel unwell." Rice said there's much not known but believes the coronavirus is "worse than the flu." "I worry about the impact on that, and we need to do everything that we can to help minimize the health impact, and we need to get testing kits out there as quickly as we can," Rice said. "Typically, when the weather warms up, the flu dies down, and next year you move onto a dif- ferent strain. Hopefully, that won't happen here." Still, Rice admitted: "It sure is scary." Aside from the coronavirus pandemic, Rice noted the need to return to normalcy in the Palmetto State after devastating recent natural disasters. "We've certainly got a lot of things done, but one that we need to finish is getting people back in houses from the disasters," Rice stated. "We have to mitigate against future disas- ters and flooding. The biggest thing economically we can do is get I-73 built. We need to give people more opportunities, but we have turned back more quickly than most from disasters." Rice also said race relations in the South were improving, but still requires work. "There's always room for improvement. I think there are these barriers that we put up among our- selves, and that's a shame," he noted. "I try really hard to make myself available to everybody. I do lots of Town Hall meetings, Coffee with the Congressman, and I go to places in the community that many people never heard of." Rice said he believes it's imperative that the less fortunate are plugged into opportunities enjoyed by others. "Everybody should be able to take advan- tage of the American Dream. That was my goal before I became congressman, and I think it's very important," Rice stated. " We've moved from trying to make sure of economic success to now that there are more jobs than people are taking, we are moving people off of the sidelines. We've moved some, and that's encour- aging." Rep. Tom Rice