Topline: The World Health Organization (WHO) said Thursday in a
press conference that it is declaring coronavirus an international health
emergency.
·
The declaration is not
a vote of no confidence in China, according to WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros
Adhanom Ghebreyesus, who praised China’s efforts: “The Chinese government is to
be congratulated for extraordinary measures it has taken to contain the
outbreak.”
·
“We don’t know what
sort of damage coronavirus could do if it spreads to a country with a weaker
health system,” said Ghebreyesus. “We must act now.”
·
The Washington Post reported earlier
on Thursday that a Chicago woman in her 60s who traveled to Wuhan, China, last
month contracted coronavirus and then spread it to her husband here in the
U.S., marking the first time that that coronavirus has spread person-to-person
inside the U.S.
·
WHO reconvened its
emergency committee in a meeting to evaluate the crisis Thursday, after declining
to declare the outbreak an international health emergency during a meeting
January 23, 2020.
·
A global emergency
includes recommendations to all countries for the prevention and reduction of
cross-border spread of the virus, as well as guidelines for worldwide health
officials to monitor, prepare and contain any infection, but WHO has no legal
authority to sanction countries.
·
The WHO meeting also
follows earlier reports that the total number of infected cases in China (over
8,100) surpassed the number of people infected
with SARS during the 2002-2003 outbreak, with the Chinese death roll reaching
171.
Chief critic: Dr. James Shepherd, a Yale School Of
Medicine professor specializing in infectious diseases, said WHO’s decision was
“fair” and that China has responded “incredibly quickly” in efforts to control
the virus, but that “in the coming weeks, we may see that China’s efforts to
isolate and lock down places has been counterproductive.” (Millions of Chinese
people are under travel restrictions as part of the
government’s response to coronavirus). “People are going to move, whatever you
do...Whether you tell them not to, they have to get food, stretch their legs,
go to work, et cetera. What is the end point of this lock down approach?” asked
Shepherd.
Key background: The first case of coronavirus was
reported in December. Chinese authorities say the disease broke out in a
seafood market in Wuhan, where it was transmitted from an animal, and is now
being transmitted between humans. The disease is spread through airborne
droplets from coughing and sneezing. Symptoms range from coughing and sneezing
to pneumonia and kidney failure in the severest cases; the incubation period is
up to 14 days. This week, Australian scientists created the virus in a lab,
which could be used to speed up the development of a vaccine and develop a
better understanding of the virus. Countries including the U.S., Australia, the
U.K., Japan and more have evacuated their citizens from China, while multiple
airlines have suspended trips to and from China. Global markets are down as
investors react to the virus’ spread, and businesses like Starbucks, Disney,
IKEA and others have temporarily closed their doors in affected areas.
Surprising fact: The WHO only rarely declares a disease a
“Public Health Emergency of International Concern,” according to Reuters. WHO has previously used the
“international public health emergency” designation for the 2019 ebola
outbreak, the 2016 Zika virus, the 2014 polio and ebola outbreak, and the 2009
H1 flu pandemic.
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