The Army is working on a vaccine for the coronavirus, but in the meantime, its top infectious disease researcher said there is one thing Americans can do to avoid getting the coronavirus: Wash your hands.

“If there’s one thing you can do — it’s wash your hands much more frequently,” Dr. Nelson L. Michael, Ph.D. and director of the Center for Infectious Diseases Research at the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research said at a Pentagon briefing Thursday.

The Army, which boasts some of the world’s leading researchers on infectious diseases, is working to develop a vaccine for coronavirus, which is a cousin to other respiratory illnesses such as Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) and Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS).

They say a vaccine will likely not be developed for widespread use until the next flu season, if a next wave of coronavirus persists.

In time meantime, Michael said to avoid getting the coronavirus, Americans should do things they already know how to do.

“Social distance — you know, we’re not going to be doing a lot of hugging and kissing. If people are sick they should stay home. If they are very very ill then they can go into the hospital,” he said.

He said Americans should recognize that the coronavirus still remains a “low risk infection.” He said:

People should recognize that at the end of the day, this still remains low risk infection to not just our service members but to the American public, and that we are really good as a hospital system, as a medical care system from both the EMT up to the intensive care units, taking care of these.

He added:

I’m not minimizing it. I’m just saying that even in the absence of a vaccine we still don’t have a vaccine for HIV infections — we have very good drugs, and we’re beginning to develop monocular antibodies. So we will continue to campaign against these infectious disease threats as we would against enemies against the homeland, we’re good at doing those sorts of things.

He concluded: “The American public should be reassured that this is a threat that we’re used to, from the standpoint of influenza, we are working on developing measures, but everyone can assist just by washing their hands.”

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