Two more people tested in NYC for deadly coronavirus
Two more people tested in NYC for deadly coronavirus
By
Julia Marsh and
Vincent Barone
February 5, 2020 | 4:29pm
The coronavirusReuters
Two more people in New York City are being tested for the new coronavirus after recently returning from China and displaying symptoms of the deadly disease, the city announced Wednesday.
“New York City is on high alert and prepared to handle any confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus,” said Mayor Bill de Blasio in a statement. “My message to New Yorkers remains the same: if you have the travel history and are exhibiting symptoms, please see your health provider immediately.”
Both patients are under 40 years old and recently traveled from China, and mark the fourth and fifth people to be tested for the virus in the city.
Only one of the new patients has been hospitalized because “the other did not have symptoms severe enough to require hospitalization,” the city said.
The second person will nevertheless remain under “appropriate isolation precautions” and be subjected to daily monitoring from the city’s Health Department, officials said.
The arrangement, following Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines, means the person must stay at home and wash their hands often, a city Health Department spokesman said.
The person is advised not to share household items or use public transportation, among other measures, the spokesman added.
No cases have been confirmed yet in New York City. The first patient to be tested in the Big Apple
came back negative on Tuesday, and
a second was cleared Wednesday, officials said.
One other patient is still awaiting their results.
There have been more than 500 deaths linked to the coronavirus amid roughly 20,000 cases documented worldwide.
“We are fortunate that the test results from our first person under investigation came back negative,” said Health Commissioner Oxiris Barbot in a statement, “but we expect to see more people presenting to health care facilities with symptoms of the novel coronavirus.”