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February 27 coronavirus news
By Jessie Yeung, Adam Renton, Ben Westcott, Eliza Mackintosh, Fernando Alfonso III, Meg Wagner and Mike Hayes, CNN
Updated 2:36 p.m. ET, February 28, 2020
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There are 256 new coronavirus cases reported in South Korea
From Hyoungjoo Choi in Seoul
South Korea reported 256 more confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus on Friday morning, bringing the national total to 2,022, according to the South Korean Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC).
The KCDC did not report any new deaths, meaning that the national death toll remains at 13.
Among the 256 new cases, 182 are from Daegu, the epicenter of the outbreak in South Korea. A total of 1,314 cases since the beginning of the outbreak have come from Daegu, according to the KCDC.
An additional 49 cases are from North Gyeongsang Province, which surrounds Daegu city.
The 15th confirmed US coronavirus patient is in serious condition
From CNN's Ben Tinker
California Rep. John Garamendi told CNN’s Erin Burnett on Thursday that the 15th confirmed US coronavirus patient is in "serious condition."
“This patient is in serious condition and our prayers go out to her and to our family,” Garamendi said.
When asked by Burnett if he had information on how this disease was transmitted, Garamendi said, “The answer is no. That is what the county is doing now. Their public health resources are going around, doing the tracking down of individuals who may have come in contact with this person. Whether this person can actually talk or not is of question. She’s been intubated, and so may not be in a position to discuss it.”
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Family members of northeast California resident with coronavirus under quarantine
From CNN's Sarah Moon
Family members of the coronavirus patient in Solano County have been identified and are in isolation pending testing.
The family will remain under quarantine for 14 days, Solano County Health and Social Services Public Health Officer Dr. Bela Matyas said in a press conference today.
The patient’s workplace has been fully addressed as well, he said. Solano County is also working to identify potential interactions with people that are not employees in the workplace.
Individuals who may have been in contact with the patient will be assessed and be placed under isolation or quarantine as appropriate, Matyas said.
South Korea novel coronavirus death toll rises to 13
From Hyoungjoo Choi in Seoul
South Korea has reported one new death from novel coronavirus in the city of Daegu, bringing the total number of coronavirus deaths in the country to 13, Daegu’s mayor Kwon Young-jin said in a press briefing on Thursday.
The victim was a 74-year-old man and a member of Shincheonji religious group who died on Thursday morning, Kwon added.
South Korea has the most confirmed coronavirus cases outside of mainland China.
Health care personnel in northeast California exposed to coronavirus patient identified
From CNN's Sarah Moon
Dozens of employees in Solano County who have been in contact with a coronavirus patient have been identified, Steve Huddleston, vice president of public affairs for NorthBay Health Care, said in a press conference today.
It still remains less than a hundred, Huddleston added.
Some employees were redirected from their work schedules and sent home yesterday to monitor their current health, according to Huddleston.
Nigeria confirms its first case of coronavirus
From CNN's Jennifer Hauser
Nigeria's Federal Ministry of Health is reporting its first case of coronavirus.
The case was confirmed Thursday in Lagos State.
Trump claims the coronavirus will "disappear" eventually
From CNN's Maegan Vazquez
President Trump expressed optimism Thursday that Coronavirus would eventually be contained and eliminated in the US, even as he acknowledged it could get worse first.
"We have done an incredible job. We’re going to continue," Trump said at an event with attendees of an African-American History Month reception in the Cabinet Room. "It’s going to disappear. One day it’s like a miracle, it will disappear. And from our shores, you know, it could get worse before it gets better. Could maybe go away. We’ll see what happens. Nobody really knows."
Trump called his Wednesday appearance before the White House press corps “a really good press conference.”
“One of the advantages is that I get covered live,” he added. “It was a calming press conference.”
He also claimed the media won’t give the administration “credit” for a successful response to the coronavirus.
The President also said that the federal government was busy preparing for the coronavirus while Democrats were working on impeachment.
“While they were working on impeachment, we were working on doing this. Because we were hearing about it,” he said.
Former top US health official urges preparation for coronavirus pandemic
From CNN's Shelby Lin Erdman
Dr. Thomas Frieden, the former director of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, told CNN’s Wolf Blitzer today that he couldn’t comment on a whistleblower in the Department of Health and Human Services who contends HHS workers handled coronavirus evacuees from Wuhan, China, without the proper protective gear until he reads the complaint.
Instead, Frieden stressed what other top health officials have been saying for the past week, that the virus is going to spread in the US.
“The bigger picture here is it has become clear over the past few days that a pandemic is inevitable. What’s not certain is how severe it will be. There are mild pandemics, moderate and severe,” Frieden said.
He said the Trump administration’s request for $2.5 billion to fight the outbreak is key.
“What we can do now is prepare in the society, generally, in our health care settings, in the government – and one of the key things to track in this next week is what happens with the supplemental funding for this, because that will determine how robust the US response can be.”
By the numbers: A 15th case of the coronavirus, confirmed in a woman in California on Wednesday, could potentially represent the beginning of the virus’ spread in the community, something the CDC has been warning about for weeks.
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