Twitter users reposted a 2020 video clip of rapper Pitbull claiming the COVID-19 pandemic had been rehearsed at a 2019 simulation. The claim was debunked then, and remains untrue.
" in the exercise and were tasked with creating a policy response to the simulation.
"Exercises similar to Event 201 are a particularly effective way to help policymakers gain a fuller understanding of the urgent challenges they could face in a dynamic, real-world crisis," according to the event website.issued a statementEvent 201 did model a fictional coronavirus, but"we explicitly stated that it was not a prediction," the center’s statement said.
Event 201 was a real event held in 2019, but it did not predict or plan for the COVID-19 pandemic. It was a preparedness exercise to help global leaders respond to future pandemics.