Third case of Coronavirus confirmed in the United States

The OC Health Care Agency’s (HCA) Communicable Disease Control Division received confirmation from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) this evening that an Orange County, California case has tested positive for the novel coronavirus.

The case, a traveler from Wuhan, China, has been in contact with the HCA and was provided guidance in order to reduce exposure to the public while awaiting laboratory confirmation from the CDC. The individual has now been transported to a local hospital and is in isolation in good condition.

In consultation with the CDC and the California Department of Public Health, the HCA is following up directly with all individuals who have had close contact with the case and are at risk of infection.

-The HCA will be monitoring any close contacts and assure that proper evaluation and care is provided if they become ill.
-The CDC’s guidance indicates that people who have casual contact with a case (in the same grocery store or movie theater) are at minimal risk of developing infection.
-There is no evidence that person-to-person transmission has occurred in Orange County.
-The current risk of local transmission remains low.

The case in California makes three confirmed cases in the United States as a patient in Washington State and another in Illinois has been confirmed. All three traveled to Wuhan, China

According to CNN, 56 people have been killed in China due to the virus as of Saturday, with over 1,900 confirmed cases in the country.

While CDC considers this a serious public health threat, based on current information, the immediate health risk from 2019-nCoV to the general American public is considered low at this time. CDC is working closely with the Illinois Department of Public Health, the Chicago Department of Public Health, and other local partners. A CDC team has been deployed to support the ongoing investigation.

However, CDC has been proactively preparing for the introduction of 2019-nCoV in the U.S. for weeks, including:

-First alerting clinicians on January 8 to be on the look-out for patients with respiratory symptoms and a history of travel to Wuhan, China.
-Developing guidance for clinicians for testing and management of 2019-nCoV, as well as guidance for home care of patients with 2019-nCoV.
-Has developed a diagnostic test to detect this virus in clinical specimens. Currently, testing must take place at CDC, but CDC is preparing to share these test kits with domestic and international partners.
-Implementing public health entry screening at Atlanta (ATL), Chicago (ORD), Los Angeles (LAX), New York (JFK), and San Francisco (SFO) airports. CDC is currently evaluating the extent and duration of this enhanced screening.
-CDC has activated its Emergency Operations Center to better provide ongoing support.

Coronaviruses are a large family of viruses, some causing respiratory illness in people and others circulating among animals including camels, cats and bats. Rarely, animal coronaviruses can evolve and infect people and then spread between people, such as has been seen with Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) and Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS). Investigations are ongoing to learn more, but person-to-person spread of 2019-nCoV is occurring.

It is likely there will be more cases reported in the U.S. in the coming days and weeks. While the immediate risk of this new virus to the American public is believed to be low at this time, there are simple daily precautions that everyone should always take. It is currently flu and respiratory disease season, and CDC recommends getting vaccinated, taking everyday preventive actions to stop the spread of germs, and taking flu antivirals if prescribed. Right now, CDC recommends travelers avoid all nonessential travel to Wuhan, China. In addition, CDC recommends people traveling to China practice certain health precautions like avoiding contact with people who are sick and practicing good hand hygiene.