As of 11 a.m., Feb. 13, the coronavirus has sickened 60,363, a jump of nearly 15,000 cases in one day, and has resulted in 1,370 deaths.
The World Health Organization officially named the disease caused by the new Chinese coronavirus "COVID-19" Feb. 11.
Key updates:
1. "We're probably going to see human-to-human transmission within the United States," CDC Director Robert Redfield, MD, told STAT. He added that public health strategies are likely to shift toward techniques to limit the number of people who become infected, such as closing certain public facilities.
"We're not going to be able to seal this virus from coming into this country," Dr. Redfield said.
2. The CDC has confirmed 14 COVID-19 cases in the U.S. Twelve patients had traveled to China before returning to the U.S.
3. COVID-19 cases jumped 14,840 in one day in the Hubei Province alone, according to The New York Times. The jump could reflect a change in diagnostic tools being used — China is now including infections diagnosed through lung scans of symptomatic patients, instead of only counting positive viral specimen tests.
4. The CDC coronavirus testing kit could be flawed, The New York Times reports. Some of the tests distributed by the CDC deliver inconclusive readings. The kits were meant to enable states to conduct their own testing so they didn't need to ship samples to the CDC central lab in Atlanta. Now, however, the agency will need to distribute new ingredients to states, further delaying results.
5. Quarantined evacuees in San Diego signed a petition urging the CDC to take further action to prevent the virus' spread, KGTV reports. Evacuees at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar created a petition after a patient with COVID-19 was mistakenly reintroduced to those quarantined. The petition thanks the CDC for its help, but suggests alternatives to mitigate transmission of the virus, such as more testing, improved separation between patients and disinfection of common areas.
Compare the outbreak to other historical outbreaks here.