Six people including 90-year-old former Air Force pilot Ed Dwight will blast off to space from the Launch Site One base in west Texas
Critics also note that children appear to be far less likely to test positive for the virus, and say the government should focus instead on the elderly and infirm who account for most of the deaths.
According to the World Health Organization, a study of more than 44,000 patients in China with confirmed infections, only 2.1 per cent were younger than 20.
Mika Nakajima, a museum employee and single mother with a 15-year-old autistic son who is sensitive to noise and people around him, said she has already used up her paid vacation days to take care of her aging parents and her son late last year, and is on the verge of losing her job.
At age 47, Nakajima says she has no hope of finding another full-time position if she's fired.
"So I'm desperate, I really cannot lose this job," she said.
"It's a difficult time for families with ordinary children, but it's much harder for those who have children with disabilities or who need attention and care," Nakajima said. "Some other forms of support are needed."
Kozue, the mother of a second-grade girl who asked to be identified by only her given name, said she is more afraid of losing her job than of the virus. A contract worker at a major company, she can get time off but without pay. Her employer agreed to allow her to work from home until the end of next week, but after she may have to send her daughter to stay with her elderly parents in Nagano in central Japan, she said.
Office worker Megumi Aoki said she has been working from home two days a week but has to find someone to take care of her two elementary school children for the rest of the week, or take those days off without pay. She said that's an option because her husband has enough income to support the family, but it would be a setback for her career.
"I think the measure was set up because of the assumption that someone, most likely mothers, is at home to take care of the children, and we became easy targets," she said.
Six people including 90-year-old former Air Force pilot Ed Dwight will blast off to space from the Launch Site One base in west Texas
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