The US death count from coronavirus infections rose to 11 on
Wednesday as new cases emerged around New York City and Los Angeles,
while Seattle-area health officials sought to allay anxiety amid the
nation's largest outbreak
Health officials said the first California death from the virus was an elderly person in Placer County, near Sacramento. He had underlying health problems and was likely exposed on a cruise ship voyage between San Francisco and Mexico last month
It marked the first coronavirus fatality in the United States outside of Washington state, where 10 people have died in a cluster of at least 39 infections that have emerged through community transmission of the virus in two Seattle-area counties
Although the Placer County patient who died was not believed to have contracted the virus locally, that case and a previous one from the Bay Area linked to the same ocean liner have led health authorities to seek other cruise passengers who may have had close contact with those two individuals
Hours after that death was announced, California Governor Gavin Newsom declared a statewide emergency in response to the coronavirus, which he said has resulted in 53 cases across the nation's most populous state
"The State of California is deploying every level of government to help identify cases and slow the spread of this coronavirus," Newsom said in a statement
Six new coronavirus patients were confirmed in Los Angeles County, public health officials said on Wednesday. One was a federal contractor who may have been exposed while conducting medical screenings at Los Angeles International Airport, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security reported
Three others likely were infected while traveling recently to northern Italy, one of the areas hardest hit in the global outbreak. Of the six in Los Angeles County, only one has been hospitalized. The other five are recovering in home isolation
The greater Seattle region represents the biggest concentration of cases detected in the United States from a virus that has killed more than 3,000 people worldwide, mostly in China, where the epidemic originated in December 2019
The fact that most Seattle-area cases are not linked to travel or exposure to people who might have been infected abroad means the virus has gone from being an imported phenomenon to taking up residence in Washington state, health officials say
At least 18 cases, including six deaths, were connected to a long-term nursing facility for the elderly, called LifeCare Center of Kirkland, in a Seattle suburb
Seattle health authorities urged a number of measures for curbing further spread of the disease, including recommendations for anyone aged 60 and older and individuals with underlying chronic health problems or compromised immunity to stay home and away from large gatherings and public places
They also urged companies to allow their employees to work from home as much as possible, stagger shifts to ease commuter congestion on public transportation and avoid large work-related gatherings when possible
"The distancing measures that we're recommending are essential because we need to slow the spread of the disease to the point where we are able to continue to handle the load," Patty Hayes, the public health director for Seattle and King County, said
In New York state, the number of cases rose to 10 on Wednesday. Three family members and a neighbor of a lawyer who was previously identified as infected tested positive
The neighbor's wife and three of his children have also contracted the virus, Governor Andrew Cuomo said
About 1,000 people in the New York City suburb of Westchester County, where the two families live, were under self-quarantine orders because of possible exposure, Cuomo said.
"We are, if anything, being overcautious," he said
AIPAC, the pro-Israel lobby, said Wednesday that a group from New York that attended its 18,000-person policy conference in Washington, D.C., this week were potentially in contact with an individual who contacted coronavirus before the conference
Dozens of Congress members attended the conference, as well as Vice President Mike Pence.
In Washington, DC, lawmakers reached bipartisan agreement on an $8.3 billion emergency bill to help fund efforts to contain the virus. The bill garnered enough votes to pass in the House of Representatives
The Senate is expected to act quickly so President Donald Trump can sign the measure into law.
More than $3 billion would be devoted to research and development of coronavirus vaccines, test kits and therapeutics. There are currently no approved vaccines or treatments for the fast-spreading illness
The administration is working to allow laboratories to develop their own coronavirus tests without seeking regulatory approval first, US Health Secretary Alex Azar said
The latest data from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) listed 129 confirmed and presumed cases in the United States, up from the previous 108. They were 80 reported by public health authorities in 13 states plus 49 among people repatriated from abroad, according to the CDC website
Health officials said the first California death from the virus was an elderly person in Placer County, near Sacramento. He had underlying health problems and was likely exposed on a cruise ship voyage between San Francisco and Mexico last month
It marked the first coronavirus fatality in the United States outside of Washington state, where 10 people have died in a cluster of at least 39 infections that have emerged through community transmission of the virus in two Seattle-area counties
Although the Placer County patient who died was not believed to have contracted the virus locally, that case and a previous one from the Bay Area linked to the same ocean liner have led health authorities to seek other cruise passengers who may have had close contact with those two individuals
Hours after that death was announced, California Governor Gavin Newsom declared a statewide emergency in response to the coronavirus, which he said has resulted in 53 cases across the nation's most populous state
"The State of California is deploying every level of government to help identify cases and slow the spread of this coronavirus," Newsom said in a statement
Six new coronavirus patients were confirmed in Los Angeles County, public health officials said on Wednesday. One was a federal contractor who may have been exposed while conducting medical screenings at Los Angeles International Airport, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security reported
Three others likely were infected while traveling recently to northern Italy, one of the areas hardest hit in the global outbreak. Of the six in Los Angeles County, only one has been hospitalized. The other five are recovering in home isolation
The greater Seattle region represents the biggest concentration of cases detected in the United States from a virus that has killed more than 3,000 people worldwide, mostly in China, where the epidemic originated in December 2019
The fact that most Seattle-area cases are not linked to travel or exposure to people who might have been infected abroad means the virus has gone from being an imported phenomenon to taking up residence in Washington state, health officials say
At least 18 cases, including six deaths, were connected to a long-term nursing facility for the elderly, called LifeCare Center of Kirkland, in a Seattle suburb
Seattle health authorities urged a number of measures for curbing further spread of the disease, including recommendations for anyone aged 60 and older and individuals with underlying chronic health problems or compromised immunity to stay home and away from large gatherings and public places
They also urged companies to allow their employees to work from home as much as possible, stagger shifts to ease commuter congestion on public transportation and avoid large work-related gatherings when possible
"The distancing measures that we're recommending are essential because we need to slow the spread of the disease to the point where we are able to continue to handle the load," Patty Hayes, the public health director for Seattle and King County, said
In New York state, the number of cases rose to 10 on Wednesday. Three family members and a neighbor of a lawyer who was previously identified as infected tested positive
The neighbor's wife and three of his children have also contracted the virus, Governor Andrew Cuomo said
About 1,000 people in the New York City suburb of Westchester County, where the two families live, were under self-quarantine orders because of possible exposure, Cuomo said.
"We are, if anything, being overcautious," he said
AIPAC, the pro-Israel lobby, said Wednesday that a group from New York that attended its 18,000-person policy conference in Washington, D.C., this week were potentially in contact with an individual who contacted coronavirus before the conference
Dozens of Congress members attended the conference, as well as Vice President Mike Pence.
In Washington, DC, lawmakers reached bipartisan agreement on an $8.3 billion emergency bill to help fund efforts to contain the virus. The bill garnered enough votes to pass in the House of Representatives
The Senate is expected to act quickly so President Donald Trump can sign the measure into law.
More than $3 billion would be devoted to research and development of coronavirus vaccines, test kits and therapeutics. There are currently no approved vaccines or treatments for the fast-spreading illness
The administration is working to allow laboratories to develop their own coronavirus tests without seeking regulatory approval first, US Health Secretary Alex Azar said
The latest data from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) listed 129 confirmed and presumed cases in the United States, up from the previous 108. They were 80 reported by public health authorities in 13 states plus 49 among people repatriated from abroad, according to the CDC website
No comments:
Post a Comment