Milwaukee, state laboratories will now do their own coronavirus testing
Wisconsin is now conducting its own tests for the new coronavirus, but the state has yet to see its second case. As of Monday, 18 people in the state have tested negative and test results for two people remain pending.
The testing will be done at the Wisconsin State Laboratory of Hygiene on the University of Wisconsin-Madison campus and at the Milwaukee Health Department, health officials said. Test samples previously were sent to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta.
The state’s lone case remained in voluntary isolation and recently tested negative for the virus, meaning it has left the person’s system.
For comparison, Wisconsin had more than 500 hospitalizations for flu last week.
Tom Haupt, respiratory disease epidemiologist and influenza surveillance coordinator for the state, said a possible vaccine for the new coronavirus could proceed to clinical trials as soon as April or May, much faster than in the past.
The announcement that labs in Wisconsin and across the country would now be testing for coronavirus came as U.S. health officials broadened their criteria for testing. It was originally limited to people who showed symptoms and had in the past 14 days either traveled to China or come in contact with a person confirmed to have the virus.
The criteria for testing now includes:
❚ People showing clinical symptoms of the disease (fever and cough or trouble breathing) who have come in contact with a confirmed coronavirus patient.
❚ People showing clinical symptoms of the disease who have traveled in the past 14 days from five countries: China, Japan, South Korea, Italy or Iran.
❚ People suffering severe lower respiratory illness (symptoms that are similar to pneumonia) without any other explanation for their illness.
The last of the three is a recognition that health officials have now seen some positive cases that do not appear to have a simple explanation.
State officials said they are asking people who are returning from China, Japan, South Korea, Italy or Iran to quarantine themselves and monitor themselves for symptoms.
Health leaders said that patients who do develop symptoms should call their local health department for guidance.