With the United States quickly becoming a global epicenter of the coronavirus pandemic, many people who moved to the country for study, life experience or professional opportunities have abandoned the lives they had built. They feared that the inequalities of the American health care system, exacerbated by the rampaging virus, could leave them vulnerable.

These transplants, many of whom completed lengthy visa applications and countless job interviews for the chance to work in America, now face the reality that their time in the country may, through a cruel twist of fate, be up, or at least interrupted for an indefinite period.

Many feel that the federal government’s delayed response to the epidemic created too risky a situation, and that they are lucky to be able to escape. Some had less choice in the matter: They lost jobs that provided them health insurance, or were freelancers and could not afford coverage.

A large share of those who have fled are young professionals based in New York. The city has been pummeled by the virus, with a death toll that already exceeds 1,000, and these expats have in many cases made flash decisions to pack up and buy a ticket on any flight they could find.