WELCOME BACK!

FOLKS, MY FIRST GUEST IS A BEST-SELLING AUTHOR, AND CNN'S

CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT, PLEASE WELCOME FOR HIS FIRST

STEPHEN COLBERT INTERVIEW, DR. SANJAY GUPTA!

THANK YOU, DOCTOR!

GOOD TO SEE YOU!

( CHEERS AND APPLAUSE ) ( BAND PLAYING )

THANK YOU -- THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR BEING ON HERE TONIGHT.

>> THANKS FOR HAVING ME.

I WISH IT WERE UNDER, YOU KNOW, BETTER CIRCUMSTANCES.

>> Stephen: ME, TOO.

APPRECIATE IT.

>> Stephen: BUT, YOU KNOW, A GOOD TIME TO TALK TO DR. SANJAY

GUPTA.

YOU'RE INFORM AGO LOT OF PEOPLE OVER ON CNN, I SEE YOU TALKING

WITH ANDERSON MANY NIGHTS.

>> YEAH.

>> Stephen: YOU'RE A DOCTOR AND YOU HAVE A NEW PODCAST

CALLED -- >> "CORONAVIRUS: FACT VS.

FICTION."

>> Stephen: LET'S GET INTO SOME OF THE FACT VERSUS FICTION

TONIGHT.

YOU TALK ON THE PODCAST ABOUT THE LINE BETWEEN CAUTION AND

PANIC, AND THAT'S CERTAINLY SOMETHING WE'VE TALKED ABOUT

HERE ABOUT, LET'S SAY, WHEN TO GET RID OF AUDIENCES OR HOW TO

DO THE SHOW MAYBE WITHOUT THE STAFF IN THE BUILDING SO WE TRY

TO KEEP PEOPLE AS SAFE AS WE CAN, WHERE IS THAT LINE BECAUSE

THAT LINE SEEMS TO BE KIND OF BLURRY RIGHT NOW.

>> YEAH, AND I THINK IT FEELS DIFFERENT FOR DIFFERENT PEOPLE

AND IT CHANGES.

IT'S CHANGED A LOT OVER THE LAST TWO MONTHS.

YOU KNOW, WE HAVE BEEN COVERING THIS STORY IN GREAT DETAIL FOR

SOME TIME.

PEOPLE NOW MORE THAN EVER ARE REALLY STARTING TO PAY

ATTENTION.

I DON'T THINK IT EVER SHOULD CROSS INTO PANIC BECAUSE PANIC

DOESN'T SERVE ANY PURPOSES, I THINK CERTAINLY FROM A MEDICAL

STANDPOINT.

THE MEDICAL ESTABLISHMENT IS HAVING TO PREPARE HERE, BUT I

THINK THE IDEA THAT PEOPLE SHOULD BE CONCERNED ENOUGH TO

REALLY START TO DO THINGS WITH THEIR OWN LIVES, THAT CAN HELP

PROTECT THEM, I THINK IS REAL.

I MEAN, THAT'S WITHIN ALL OF US AT THIS POINT.

>> Stephen: WELL, LET ME REPHRASE IT SLIGHTLY THEN, HOW

WORRIED SHOULD WE BE?

>> I THINK FOR THE MAJORITY OF PEOPLE, THIS IS NOT GOING TO BE

SOMETHING THAT'S GOING TO MAKE THEM TREMENDOUSLY ILL, THIS

CORONAVIRUS.

IT MIGHT MAKE THEM SICK FOR A FEW DAYS, THEY'RE LIKELY TO

RECOVER.

>> Stephen: HOW DOES THAT MANIFEST IT'SSELF?

BECAUSE I'VE HEARD THAT, FOR 80% TO HAVE THE PEOPLE -- AND

CORRECT MY NUMBERS IF YOU NEED TO -- THAT 80% TO HAVE THE

PEOPLE, YOU WILL HAVE NOTHING OR SOMETHING MILD.

>> RIGHT.

>> Stephen: -- TO MANIFEST.

BUT THE 20%, IT COULD BE SEVERE.

WHEN IT DOES MANIFEST ITSELF, WHAT IS THAT?

>> PEOPLE WILL DEVELOP A PRETTY SIGNIFICANT PNEUMONIA.

A LOT OF TIMES THEY'LL DEVELOP INNAME MEDICATION IN THE LUNGS.

YOU THINK OF THE LUNGS AS BEING SOFT SPONGES.

WHEN YOU GET INFLAMMATION, THEY DON'T WORK AS WELL AND IT'S

HARDER TO BREATHE.

INITIALLY, SOMEONE MIGHT HAVE DIFFICULTY WALKING UP A FLIGHT

OF STAIRS WITHOUT GETTING SHORT OF BREATH.

>> Stephen: LIKE RUNNING ONCE AROUND THE AUDIENCE AND COMING

ON STAGE.

>> EXACTLY.

BUT YOU WILL NOTICE CHANGES IN TERMS OF HOW YOUR BODY IS

FUNCTIONING.

>> Stephen: WHAT IF YOU'RE IN MID 50s AND YOU'RE NOTICING

CHANGES IN HOW YOUR BODY IS FUNCTIONING ALL THE TIME?

>> YOU'RE IN GOOD SHAPE.

I CAN TELL.

>> Stephen: THANK YOU.

A DOCTOR JUST SAID I'M IN GOOD SHAPE, HONEY.

( LAUGHTER ) >> I MEAN, THERE ARE CERTAIN

POPULATION OF PEOPLE I WORRY ABOUT.

I TELL YOU, STEPHEN, I HAVE BEEN CALLING MY PARENTS EVERY DAY.

THEY'RE IN THEIR LATE 70s, THEY LIVE IN FLORIDA.

IT STRUCK ME, IN THE BEGINNING OF THE GEARINGS, THE MESSAGE IS

ALWAYS 80% WILL BE FINE.

I WAS THINKING WHAT IF I'M IN MY LATE 70s AND EARLY 80s and

nobody cares about me, so we have identified who the

vulnerable population is here.

IT IS ELDERLY PEOPLE AND PEOPLE WHO HAVE PRE-EXISTING CONDITIONS

LIKE HEART DISEASE.

FOR THEM, THEIR IMMUNE SYSTEM WON'T BE ABLE TO FIGHT THIS

VIRUS AS WELL SO THE LUNGS WON'T BE ABLE TO STAY AS PLIABLE AND

THEY CAN EVENTUALLY DEVELOP RESPIRATORY DISTRESS AND NEED TO

BE ON A BREATHING MACHINE, THEY NEED TO BE SUPPORTED WHILE THE

BODY TRIES TO FIGHT OFF THE VIRUS.

THAT'S HAPPENING IN REAL TIME, NOW AS I'M TALKING TO YOU, IN

ITALY, IN KOREA, IN CHINA, PATIENTS SHOWING UP AT

HOSPITALS, SOMETIMES THESE HOSPITALS NOT HAVING ENOUGH TO

TAKE CARE OF THESE PATIENTS AND I'M JUST STUNNED BY THE

DECISION-MAKING THAT HAS TO HAPPEN AT THESE HOSPITALS NOW.

I HAVE A PATIENT HERE AND HERE, BOTH OF THEM, I COULD SAVE THEM,

BOTH, BUT I DON'T HAVE THE RESOURCES TO DO THAT, SO I'M

GOING TO HAVE TO MAKE A REALLY TOUGH DECISION.

THAT'S WHAT'S HAPPENING HERE.

IS THAT ALARMING?

YES, IT SHOULD BE ALARMING.

CAN IT BE PREVENTED?

ABSOLUTELY.

SHOULD WE HAVE BEEN PREPARING FOR THE LAST SIX WEEKS?

FOR SURE.

DID WE?

DOESN'T SEEM LIKE IT.

THAT'S, I THINK -- IF I GET PANICKED, IT'S NOT BECAUSE TO

HAVE THE VIRUS, IT'S BECAUSE OF OUR -- IT'S NOT BECAUSE OF THE

VIRUS, IT'S BECAUSE OF OUR RESPONSE TO THINGS.

>> Stephen: I HEAR CONFLICTING STORIES OF HOW THIS CAN SPREAD.

HOW DOES IT SPREAD, AS FAR AS WE KNOW?

IS IT SURFACES?

IS IT DROPLETS?

DOES IT AEROSOLIZE?

HOW LONG CAN IT STAY ON THE SURFACE?

DO WE KNOW?

>> WE DO HAVE A PRETTY GOOD IDEA.

CHINA WAS THE FIRST PLACE WE REALLY STARTED TO SEE THIS AND

THERE WERE LARGE STUDIES OF 80,000 PEOPLE AND WE LOOK AT

THAT.

IT DOESN'T AEROSOLIZE LIKE MEASLES THAT ATTACH TO DUST AND

WILL SUSPEND IN THE AIR.

IF I HAD MEASLES AND LEFT HERE TWO HOURS LATER, SOMEWOULD BE

COULD COME IN AND CONTRACT MEASLES FROM WHERE I WAS

SITTING.

>> Stephen: THAT'S NOT THE CASE HERE?

>> THAT'S NOT THE CASE HERE.

THE RESPIRATORY DROPLETS CAN HANG IN THE AIR FOR A BIT BUT

TYPICALLY WILL GO TO GROUND OR A SURFACE.

SO IF I'M IN CLOSE PROXIMITY WITHIN, YOU KNOW, THREE TO SIX

FEET, SOMETHING LIKE THIS, YES, EXACTLY, IT'S MORE CONCERNING.

BUT THE SURFACES IS BECAUSE THE RESPIRATORY DROPLETS CAN LAND ON

A SURFACE, YOU TOUCH IS SURFACE, EYES, NOSE, MOUTH, AND PEOPLE

BECOME INFECTED.

>> Stephen: SHOULD PEOPLE STILL DATE?

>> I THINK IT DEPENDS ON HOW MUCH YOU LIKE THE PERSON.

>> Stephen: I MEAN, BLIND DATE?

>> NO.

NO BLIND DATES.

>> Stephen: TINDER?

DEFINITELY NOT.

BUT EVEN BEFORE THIS, NO TINDER.

( LAUGHTER ) I'M KIDDING.

( PIANO RIFF ) HEARST THE THING -- I THINK, YOU

KNOW, STEPHEN, EVERYTHING IN LIFE IS A RISK/REWARD

PROPOSITION.

I TELL PEOPLE ALL THE TIME AS A DOCTOR, DON'T SMOKE, DON'T EAT

CHEESEBURGERS OR ANYTHING LIKE THAT, BUT IF YOU REALLY WANT ONE

YOU WILL DO IT BECAUSE THE RISK/REWARD PROPOSITION IS GOOD

ENOUGH FOR YOU.

GETTING ON A PLANE -- I'M GETTING ON A PLANE TOMORROW,

PROBABLY -- YOU KNOW, IS IT RISKIER TO DO THINGS THAN

BEFORE, PERHAPS.

BUT EVERYTHING IS A RISK/REWARD PROPOSITION.

BEING IN CLOSE CONTACT WITH SOMEBODY, ESPECIALLY SOMEBODY

YOU DON'T KNOW, IT'S A DIFFERENT TIME RIGHT NOW, AND I THINK WHAT

I'M REALLY STRUCK BY IS THAT NEVER BEFORE -- AND I HAVE BEEN

DOING THIS FOR A LONG TIME -- HAVE I FOUND A SITUATION WHERE

HOW I BEHAVE SO DRAMATICALLY IMPACTS YOUR HEALTH, AND HOW YOU

BEHAVE SO DRAMATICALLY IMPACTS MY HEALTH AND ALL THE PEOPLE IN

THIS THEATER TONIGHT.

>> Stephen: NOT JUST YOU, BUT MY BEHAVIOR TOWARD YOU WILL

AFFECT YOUR PARENTS IN THE LATE 70s, I'M SEEING THE PEOPLE YOU

KNOW.

>> THAT'S RIGHT, THESE CONCENTRIC CIRCLES AROUND YOU,

THAT HAS TO BE IMPORTANT TO ME.

I HAVE AN OBLIGATION NOW, NOT JUST FOR MY HEALTH, MY FAMILY'S

HEALTH, BUT FOR YOUR HEALTH AND YOUR FAMILY'S HEALTH.

WE ARE CO-DEPENDENT ON EACH OTHER IN A WAY I'VE NEVER SEEN

BEFORE.

THERE'S AN OBLIGATION NOW.

I DON'T WANT TO GET TOO PHILOSOPHICAL HERE, BUT I FIND

IT REALLY FASCINATING IN A WAY, IF NOT FOR ME -- IF I DON'T

ENGAGE IN THESE GOOD BEHAVIORS FOR ME, THEN I SHOULD DO IT FOR

YOU, I SHOULD DO IT FOR THE PEOPLE AROUND ME, AND I THINK,

HOPEFULLY, THAT'S MOTIVATING FOR PEOPLE TO DO THIS.

I THINK INDIVIDUAL BEHAVIORS MAKE SUCH A BIG DIFFERENCE HERE.

I DON'T THINK PEOPLE GELT IT YET, BUT I THINK PEOPLE WILL GET

THIS, STEPHEN, I REALLY DO, BECAUSE IT'S SO IMPORTANT FOR

PEOPLE TO UNDERSTAND -- I TELL PEOPLE TO WASH THEIR HANDS AND

THEN, LIKE, YOU'RE TELLING ME IN THE MIDDLE OF A PANDEMIC THAT

WASHING MY HANDS, THAT'S ALL YOU'VE GOT?

DO YOU UNDERSTAND HOW MUCH OF AN IMPACT THAT NOT ONLY MAKES FOR

YOU, IT MAKES FOR ME.

IT'S BECOMING VERY REAL FOR PEOPLE, I THINK, IN THAT WAY.

>> Stephen: WELL, WE DON'T HAVE AUDIENCE BUT WE STILL HAVE

COMMERCIALS.

WE HAVE TO TAKE A LITTLE BIT OF A BREAK.

PLEASE STICK AROUND.

WE'LL HAVE MORE INFORMATION ABOUT CORONAVIRUS AND HOW YOU

CAN PROTECT YOURSELF AND YOUR FAMILY, FROM DR. SANJAY GUPTA.

STICK AROUND.