Two weeks ago, Italy had 322 coronavirus cases. Today its 10,149. Doctors can’t care for them all — they don’t even have enough oxygen machines for everyone who needs them.

The Italian government has now shut down the country, stopping all public events and restricting non-critical travel. But it was too late for so many. Every day counts: had authorities in China locked down Hubei province just one day earlier, it would have meant 20,000 less cases.

We need all governments to take note and cancel everything — now. No sports events, no conferences, no public gatherings. If they don’t, health care systems worldwide could be overwhelmed literally just days from now.

There’s no time to delay — call on your government to act, and we’ll deliver our names ASAP.

Canceling everything isn’t the same as closing everything. In Italy, people can still move around for groceries, work, or for health, child, or senior care. There should also be exceptions to ensure vulnerable people are fed, and housed, and people who miss out on critical work income will be compensated. Government services need to continue.

This isn’t out of control panic. Expert after expert says that the single most important thing is slowing the spread of the virus to give medical authorities time to react, and that the best thing we can do to help that happen is “social distancing”, including cancelling larger public gatherings.

Some countries and cities are already doing this, but with a virus like this we’re only as strong as our weakest link. If all governments don’t step in, we’ll soon all face the dilemma of Italy’s doctors, deciding which patient should get life-saving care, and which must be left to die.

If we act smart, and work together, we can minimize the impact of this virus and save the lives of millions. But we need to do it now.

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