CNN host Chris Cuomo appeared on-air for the first time following his announcement that he tested positive for the coronavirus.
On Tuesday morning, Cuomo announced that he tested positive for COVID-19. During his show on Tuesday night, he said he hoped that his illness would remind people to abide by social distancing guidelines because the virus could infect them as well.
“My suggestion: Don’t get caught in the numbers,” Cuomo said of the virus’s death toll. “They’re just scary, and they’re out of the context. We do not have the testing data to make real sense of our reality beyond what we know is the face of it for an overwhelming number who get sick, and that face is mine. I tested positive. Scary, yes, as you might imagine. But better me than you.”
He continued, “My concern is what I may have put on my family. Just like you would. That is hurting me way more than anything the virus can do. So, let’s focus, Let’s use this example of me having it as proof that you can get it, too, God forbid. We have to do everything we can to avoid being sick. We have to do it for ourselves, our families, and for those on the front lines who are saving the lives of people like me and many of you.”
Cuomo said that he did not want to be the story but that he was feeling well enough to do the show. While he said he was healthy enough to do the show, he added the stipulation, “You do not want this [virus].”
