Fifth Case of Coronavirus Infection in the U.S. Confirmed

The U.S. has stated that a fifth case of the coronavirus has been confirmed in the country. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said on Sunday that the infected person was based in Arizona. 

A top Chinese health official also said that the fast-spreading virus can be passed on from person to person, even before the infected person knows they're ill. 

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The U.S. infections

This brings the number of coronavirus-infected people in the U.S. up to five.

There is a case of a man in his thirties in Washington state, a woman in Chicago in her sixties, a man in his fifties in Orange County, California, one in Los Angeles County, and the last person detected lives in Arizona. 

All five patients had recently traveled to Wuhan in China, the epicenter of the outbreak. 

State and federal officials are ensuring to follow up on anyone who has had close contact with the infected patients. The aim is to minimize the outbreak in the U.S. as much as possible. 

CDC confirms 3 new cases of novel #coronavirus (#2019nCoV) infection in the U.S., 1 in AZ & 2 in CA, bringing total to 5. All US cases travelled from Wuhan, China. More cases may be identified. However, risk to US general public is still considered low. https://t.co/4LCdPwHizU pic.twitter.com/4RVMxJ1Wh0

— CDC (@CDCgov) January 27, 2020

Pass the infection on before knowing you have the virus

Chinese Health Minister, Ma Xiaowei, disclosed that people can spread the virus before they have the symptoms. 

This is worrying news, as it takes roughly two weeks before the symptoms of the coronavirus start to show. The number of people in touch with infected people could be extremely high. 

The U.S. is doing everything they can in order to nip the issue in the bud. Senator Chuck Schumer has urged the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to declare an emergency so that $85 million can be used for the CDC.

The country is working hard to try and keep infections at a minimum and has already created a vaccine against the coronavirus. People are being urged to go for their regular flu vaccines, which is another way of preventing the spread of the virus.