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MEAWW.COM / NEWS / HEALTH

Coronavirus: CDC warns that schools and businesses could be shut down if outbreak is declared a pandemic

The warning comes as the health agency confirmed COVID-19 cases in 21 repatriated passengers. The total number of cases as on February 21 stands at 35 in the US
UPDATED FEB 24, 2020
(AP Photo)
(AP Photo)

Stating that schools and businesses are shutting down in Asian countries to reduce the spread of the new coronavirus, health officials from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) cautioned that the US is also preparing to implement similar measures. This comes even as the CDC prepares for the outbreak to turn into a pandemic. 

The warning comes as the CDC confirmed COVID-19 cases in 21 repatriated passengers. 

“If you’re watching the news, you may be hearing about schools shutting down and businesses closing in countries in Asia to reduce the potential spread of this virus.  The day may come where we need to implement such measures in the US communities,” said Dr Nancy Messonnier, Director of the Center for the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases (NCIRD), CDC, during a media briefing.

She said that the CDC is working with state, local, and territorial health departments to ready the public health workforce in the US to respond to local cases in the “possibility this outbreak could become a pandemic.”

“We are working closely with healthcare systems across the country to reinforce infection control principles and plans for surges of people seeking and requiring care.  We’re collaborating with supply chain partners to understand what medical supplies are needed and available. This will help CDC understand when we may need to take more aggressive measures to ensure that healthcare workers on the frontlines have access to the supplies they need,” said Dr Messonnier.

She added, “We’re working with businesses, hospitals, pharmacies, clinicians, manufacturers, and distributors to communicate about these measures and what they can do to get ready.”

In this image from a video taken on February 17, 2020, US passengers who evacuated off the quarantined cruise ship board a Kalitta Air plane bound for the US, at Haneda airport in Tokyo. (Cheryl and Paul Molesky via AP)

The CDC, however, said that despite the increasing cases in China and around the world, it believes that the aggressive travel precautions implemented by the US are working. The health experts said the fact that the US has been able to keep the number of confirmed cases low is good news, especially given what is being witnessed among some countries in Asia that are beginning to experience community spread. 

“We’re not seeing spread here in the US yet, but it is possible, even likely, that it may eventually happen. Our goal continues to be slowing the introduction of the virus into the US. This buys us more time to prepare our communities for more cases and possibly sustained spread.  This new virus represents a tremendous public health threat,” said Dr Messonnier.

The CDC is now making the case counts in two tables -- one only tracks people who were repatriated by the state department, and the second tracks all other cases picked up through US public health network.

The CDC has confirmed that there are 14 cases in the US versus 21 cases among people who were repatriated. The repatriated cases include 18 passengers from the “diamond princess” and three from the Wuhan repatriation flights. Among the 14 US cases, 12 are travel-related, and two have been identified as a person-to-person spread.

Taken together, the US virus cases stand at 35, according to figures released on February 21. The CDC will continue to update the numbers every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, said the agency.

Confirmed cases in the US (till February 21, 2020). (Source: CDC)
Confirmed cases among persons Repatriated to US and tested by CDC (till February 21, 2020). (Source: CDC)

The CDC said that is based on what is known about the attack rates and the exposures, they expect to see further cases among US passengers who were quarantined at the Diamond Princess cruise ship in Japan.

Dr Messonnier explained some of these passengers are still in what would be considered as the incubation period, which is known to be 10 to 14 days. Until that period is over, it will not be clear how many additional cases are there.

“329 US citizens earlier this week returned to the US aboard two state department chartered flights. So far, 18 have tested positive at CDC. Another 10 were reportedly positive in Japan. 11 are receiving care at the University of Nebraska medical center. Five are receiving care around Travis. Two are receiving care around Lackland. Because the passengers on the “Diamond Princess” were in a close setting, where there has been a significant spread of COVID-19, they are considered at high risk for infection. We do expect to see additional confirmed cases of COVID-19 among the passengers,” said Dr Messonnier.

She added, “We are keeping track of cases resulting from repatriation efforts separately because we don’t believe those numbers accurately represent the picture of what is happening in the community in the United States at this time.”

Additionally, since many of these people are over the age of 60, the US is also preparing for other medical issues to arise that will require hospitalization.  

The building housing the biocontainment unit at Nebraska Medical Center. The center is treating patient potentially exposed to a viral outbreak of the COVID-19 virus. (AP Photo/Josh Funk)

Officials from the US State Department, meanwhile, said that while the US government has successfully evacuated hundreds of our citizens in recent weeks, such repatriation flights do not reflect “our standard practice and should not be relied upon as an option for US citizens under potential risk of quarantine by local authorities.” 

The State Department issued a statement, asking US citizens to reconsider travel by cruise ship to or within Asia. 

“Many countries implemented strict screening procedures to prevent the spread of the COVID-19 virus. This is a dynamic situation and US citizens traveling by ship may be impacted by travel restrictions affecting their itineraries or may be subject to quarantine procedures implemented by local authorities. People who plan to travel by cruise ship should contact their cruise ship line companies for further information on the current rules and restrictions, and should continue to monitor the travel.state.gov website for updated information,” said the State Department.

Responding to reports that 14 Americans infected with coronavirus were repatriated to the US against the advice of the CDC, experts from the agency said that these are difficult decisions that are being in real-time. “When you make those kinds of complicated decisions, there are going to be different perspectives that are brought to the table,” said the CDC.

The US State Department stood by its decision to bring back the cruise ship people who had tested positive. 

“This was an emerging and unusual circumstance. We had 328 people on buses. We had a plan. We were executing the plan. Then we received lab results on otherwise asymptomatic, un-ill people that were on their way to an airport. I think the folks on the ground did just the right thing by, out of an abundance of caution, moving those 14 people into an isolation area where they pose no threat to themselves or anyone else,” Dr William Walters, Executive Director and Managing Director of operational medicine at the US State Department, told the media.

He added, “At the end of the day, the state department had a decision to make, informed by our inter-agency partners. We made ahead and made that decision. The decision, I think, was the right one, in bringing those people home.”

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