- Pennsylvania Real-Time News
UPMC doctor argues COVID-19 not as deadly as feared, says its hospitals will shift back to normal
Updated Apr 30, 2020; Posted Apr 30, 2020 
Dr. Donald Yealy of UPMC in Pittsburgh, Pa. speaks to reporters during an online briefing on April 30, 2020.
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David Wenner | [email protected]A UPMC doctor on Thursday made a case the death rate for people infected with the new coronavirus may be as low as 0.25% — far lower than the mortality rates of 2-4% or even higher cited in the early days of the pandemic.
Dr. Donald Yealy based it partly on studies of levels of coronavirus antibodies detected in people in New York and California, and partly on COVID-19 deaths in the Pittsburgh region. The studies found that 5-20% of people had been exposed to the coronavirus, with many noticing only mild illness or none at all, he said