This essay is a commentary on the U.S. Federal government response to the 2020 COVID-19 outbreak. The focus is on the response of the Trump Administration during the first 3 months of the outbreak, specifically the period between January 20, 2020, and May 15, 2020. The following question is addressed: To what extent was the strategy implemented by the U.S. federal government guided by evidence-based decisions? While nobody was a COVID-19 expert at the beginning of the outbreak, this being a novel virus, the essay argues that the U.S. federal government failed to use evidence from previous pandemics and natural disasters and from the experience of other countries. In addition, the essay warns of the current lack of consistency in following data generated by U.S. agencies and institutions.

中文翻译：

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美国联邦政府在爆发前 3 个月对 COVID-19 的反应：循证方法是一种选择吗？

这篇文章是对美国联邦政府对 2020 年 COVID-19 爆发的反应的评论。重点是特朗普政府在疫情爆发的前 3 个月，特别是 2020 年 1 月 20 日至 2020 年 5 月 15 日期间的应对。联邦政府以循证决策为指导？虽然在爆发之初没有人是 COVID-19 专家，但这是一种新型病毒，但这篇文章认为，美国联邦政府未能使用来自先前大流行和自然灾害的证据以及其他国家的经验。此外，这篇文章警告说，目前在跟踪美国机构和机构生成的数据方面缺乏一致性。