FDA vows to test one million people by end of next week as death toll hits six, more than 100 cases are confirmed across 15 states – and at least a quarter of these were transmitted through communities NOT travel
The coronavirus death toll in the US rose to six on Monday and there are now more than 100 confirmed cases across 15 states
Roughly a quarter of the cases in the US have likely been transmitted through local communities and are not travel-related, according to health officials
Despite this, the first cases detected in both Georgia and New Hampshire on Monday have been linked to travel in Italy
Five of the six deaths – all of which occurred in Washington – have been linked to a Seattle senior living facility
State and local authorities have been stepping up testing for the illness following a debacle with faulty kits from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Officials expect more than one million people to be tested within the next week
By EMILY CRANE
DAILYMAIL.COM
3 March 2020
Health officials believe a quarter of the current coronavirus cases in the United States were transferred through US communities rather than travel and have vowed to test a million people by the end of the week.
An increase in testing for the coronavirus began shedding light on Monday on how the illness has spread in the United States with the death toll rising to six and newly confirmed cases in New York, Georgia and New Hampshire pushing the tally to more than 100 across 15 states.
Dr Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, has said he expects community-related cases to grow in the coming weeks.
‘My concern is as the next week or two or three go by, we’re going to see a lot more community-related cases,’ he said. ‘That’s of great concern.’
Roughly a quarter of the 111 cases in the US have likely been transmitted through local communities and are not travel-related, according to health officials.
Despite this, the latest cases detected in both Georgia and New Hampshire on Monday – both firsts for each state – have been linked to travel in Italy.
The two cases in Georgia involve people from the same Atlanta household, including a man who recently returned from Italy. The New Hampshire case involved a hospital worker who also recently returned from a trip to Italy.
New York on Tuesday announced its second confirmed case in a man in Westchester County, which is just outside New York City.
Meanwhile five of the six deaths – all of which occurred in Washington state – have been linked to the same Seattle senior living facility.
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