Pentagon opens 11 new coronavirus quarantine facilities as hospitals already at capacity with flu patients brace for a shortage of beds if the virus spreads in the US
The Department of Defense has designated 11 air bases as quarantines
So far, more than 800 Americans returning from the epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak in Wuhan are quarantined on three bases
No additional evacuation flights are scheduled but officials expect a trickle of travelers who have been to Wuhan in the past two weeks to continue
With a relatively severe flu season in full-swing, US hospitals are already running out of beds
Coronavirus is not spreading in the US yet, but hospital staff area already bracing with ‘surge capacity’ plans and efforts ton conserve face masks
By NATALIE RAHHAL ACTING US HEALTH EDITOR
DAILYMAIL.COM
10 February 2020
The Pentagon is setting up quarantines at 11 additional quarantines on military bases in anticipation of an influx of US citizens returning from China and in need of monitoring for coronavirus.
So far, 12 people in the US have been diagnosed with coronavirus and the Pentagon had previously agreed to house 1,000 people in 14-day quarantines.
Now, with five planes having returned to the US with evacuees from Wuhan, the epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak, the number of people detained under quarantine is approaching that originally agreed upon number.
Pentagon officials Thursday designated new facilities near airports in Hawaii, Illinois, Texas, California, Georgia, New York, Washington, Washington, DC, New Jersey and Michigan to house additional travelers.
Hospital officials, too, are worried about bed space with the flu season in full swing and the threat of coronavirus cases looming.
PENTAGON OPENS 11 MORE QUARANTINES NEAR AIRPORTS WHERE FLIGHTS ARE REROUTED FROM CHINA
New quarantine centers will be opened at:
JB Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii (HNL)
Great Lakes Training Center Navy Base, Illinois (ORD)
Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base, Texas (DFW)
March ARB, California (LAX)
Travis AFB, California (SFO)
Dobbins ARB, Georgia (ATL)
Fort Hamilton, New York (JFK)
Naval Base Kitsap, Washington (SEA)
Joint Base Anacostia, Washington DC (IAD)
Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, New Jersey (EWR)
Fort Custer Training Center, Michigan (DTW)
The additional quarantine locations were added at the request of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), which also announced Friday that the White House was prepared to commit $110 million to the global fight against coronavirus
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