WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump is claiming of surging suicides if the U.S. economy remains mostly shut due to the spread of the coronavirus. There’s no evidence that suicides will rise dramatically, let alone surpass potential coronavirus deaths. Historically in a crisis, suicides tend to diminish as society pulls together in a common purpose.

Trump’s statement was one of several that showed him to be an outlier among top public officials as the coronavirus crisis deepens. A look at claims from Trump and his coronavirus task force and how they compare with the facts:

Trump is saying he wants to reopen the nation for business soon, even if it means more coronavirus infections.

“You’re going to have suicides by the thousands” Trump said at a Fox News town hall. “People get tremendous anxiety and depression, and you have suicides over things like this when you have terrible economies. You have death. Probably and — I mean, definitely — would be in far greater numbers than the numbers that we’re talking about with regard to the virus.”

At this point there’s no evidence that suicides will rise dramatically if nationwide social-distancing guidelines that have closed many businesses and are expected to trigger a spike in unemployment stay in place.

“It is not a foregone conclusion that we will see increased suicide rates,” said Dr. Christine Moutier of the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention.

While there’s no way to predict this time around, historically “we actually tend in most instances to see suicide rates diminish” during times of national crisis such as war or natural disasters, she said. Among the theories is that society pulls together during duress.

Overall, the nation’s suicide rate has been rising in recent years, for a variety of reasons including the opioid epidemic. But the even higher suicide rate seen during the Great Depression of the 1930s fell sharply with the onset of World War II. More recently, a 2017 study found fewer suicides than had been expected during the Great Recession of 2007-2009.

That said, the stress and anxiety of the current crisis are a concern for everyone’s health, including people with mental health disorders. Health experts are encouraging people to keep socially connected while they’re physically apart – maintaining vitally important ties with family and friends to combat loneliness. And Moutier praised the federal government’s expansion of telemedicine during the current coronavirus crisis, allowing more people access to mental health services without having to leave their homes.

Trump says he wants to assess whether to reopen the country for business at the end of the current 15-day period of recommended closures, or March 30. He said Tuesday he’d love to have the country opened back up by Easter, which is April 12.

Top health officials have cautioned that it’s not clear if the national call for 15 days of social distancing will be enough, something that partly depends on how many people obey. Some of the country’s hardest-hit areas have implemented tougher restrictions as the virus continues to spread.