Recently, officials from the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention stated that there is an urgent need for awareness and control regarding the spread of coronavirus infection in the local communities within the US.
More specifically, there was a focus on how there is a lack of understanding about the severity of the health issues as well as preparation in order to counter it which, in turn, can pose a significant threat to the public health in the country.
Previously, the news circulating coronavirus infection in the US reported only confirmed diagnosis of the condition. The patient was hospitalized immediately and separated from the rest of the people.
In addition, the healthcare providers and staff that handled the man were also immediately sent for screening to make sure none of them had contracted the virus from the patient but there are also more cases that have been reported.
Consequently, outgoing and incoming flights to and from China to any part of the US have been temporarily halted. There are also active screenings at the selected and most used airports to further prevent the spread of the coronavirus epidemic.
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However, in the new telebriefing, experts at the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention confirmed that the U.S. federal agencies have begun preparing for a potential coronavirus outbreak at a local level in different parts of the country.
Currently, other countries, specifically those in Asia have taken drastic measures to cut down the risk of the spread of the coronavirus infection. For instance, China’s neighboring countries including Mongolia have closed the border and announced public holidays.
Secondly, Kazakhstan, which is one of China’s most important and biggest trading partner have not only halted travel and closed the border but have also stopped issuing citizenships to any Chinese people.
Such practices can be noticed in countries around the globe but the number of cases of coronavirus infection and coronavirus-caused deaths is still increasing. Statistically, over ten thousand deaths have occurred in China alone.
Most recently, cases of coronavirus infection have also been reported in other Asian countries including India and Iran. Since the coronavirus epidemic is spreading regardless of the efforts, the CDC emphasizes the need for preparation for any similar event occurring in the US.
Additionally, the director of the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, Dr. Nancy Messonnier, specifically suggested that people themselves should also take all the mandatory preventive measures needed in a time of an epidemic.
According to the most recent reports, there are fifty-three confirmed cases of coronavirus infection in the US.
Thirty-nine of these cases are of repatriated US citizens, twelve are related to people who had traveled to China, and two were associated with infection via person to person contact.
An increase in cases, along with the very-fast rate of spread of the infection in places outside of China has caused much concern among health experts in the country.
Dr. Messonnier commented on the growing concerns, saying “Community spread is often a trigger to begin implementing new strategies tailored to local circumstances that blunt the impact of disease and can slow the spread of [the] virus,”
However, she also states that so far, the agencies are taking all the measures needed to control the spread of coronavirus infection in the words “The U.S. [have] been implementing an aggressive containment strategy that requires detecting, tracking, and isolating all cases, as much as possible, and preventing more introduction of disease, notably at points of entry [in the country],”
