so, there are claims that upwards of half of the patients being treated for covid-19 in the united states are under the age of 60. this is drastically different than data coming out of everywhere else in the world. how to make sense of that?

well, perhaps the first thing to point out is how unhealthy americans are - and this isn't simply another anti-yanqui screed, although it will no doubt become one if i end up ranting for long enough. you know this is mostly stream of consciousness, right? unless i pull out the math. there's really only any effort to order this if you see equations, that's the giveaway. 

but, it's true. americans have ridiculous levels of obesity, terrible blood pressure, off the chart rates of obesity, terrible heart health and even continue to smoke at high rates in some places.

the only data we have is their age. but, how many were obese? how many had heart disease? etc?

the second thing to point out is that if a lot of american cases are younger, that means they're at least doing a good job of staying away from the elderly. but, this is america. most people just stick their elderly relatives in a home and never call them ever again. whatever the reasoning, this is some cause for applause - they seem to be doing this right.

the third thing to point out is that it likely indicates a very, very high level of incidence in the general population. i don't have enough data to give you a rough calculation, but you're likely looking at hundreds of thousands or even millions of cases in the united states, alone. 

does it suggest that the virus is more deadly for young people than previously thought, or that young people should take extra precautions? well, we already knew it would be harmful for people suffering from obesity. so, i would not jump to that conclusion, no.