Most days, the traffic jams come close to being a national epidemic.

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"Most Americans think that we've solved the problem of impaired driving, but in fact, it's still a national epidemic, " NTSB Chairman Deborah Hersman said.

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Gun violence is a national epidemic.

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First and foremost, you have a national obesity epidemic that is cutting across all geographies and social economic lines.

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Much of the running commentary on Twitter is a reaction to news events, so when a flu epidemic becomes a national news story, the number of people talking about it spikes, regardless of their own health status.

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Mugabe's government has declared the cholera epidemic a national emergency and called on international organizations for help.

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The government set up a national committee to curb the epidemic some 15 years ago.

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On the other hand, the obesity epidemic is a national crisis.

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Childhood obesity is widely acknowledged to be not only an epidemic but also a major threat to national security.

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What we ended up with, in a sense, was the monetary version of our national obesity epidemic.

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And you know, Michel, we are going into 28 years into this epidemic and we still do not have a national AIDS strategy.

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