FLORIDA REPORTS FIRST 2 PATIENTS

DeSantis declares public health emergency as coronavirus hits state

Florida’s first two cases of coronavirus were confirmed Sunday, prompting Gov. Ron DeSantis to declare a public health emergency.

The two people tested presumptive positive for the coronavirus, the governor said Sunday at about 9:30 p.m. The cases involve someone in Hillsborough County and someone in Manatee County, he said in the order.

“Because of the foregoing conditions, I direct the State Health Officer and Surgeon General, Dr. Scott Rivkees, to declare a public health emergency in the State of Florida,” DeSantis’s order said. “The State Health Officer is authorized and directed to use his judgment as to the duration of this public health emergency.”

No other information was released about either case.

The Venice Gondolier reported that a patient at Sarasota’s Doctors Hospital in Manatee County was being treated for coronavirus. The newspaper said a letter was distributed to hospital patients about the situation.

“The letter from Sunday states the hospital was notified by the Centers for Disease Control that ‘we have a patient in our facility who presumptively tested positive for COVID-19,’ ” the newspaper reported.

On Friday, the Florida surgeon general said four people, who came from restricted travel areas, were awaiting test results. Another 152 people were being monitored at home; they have no symptoms but

came from restricted travel areas or had contact with someone who was infected.

DeSantis said Rivkees is directed to follow the guidelines of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to control the spread of the virus, officially known as COVID-19, and to educate the public on prevention.

He said the Florida Department of Health will be the lead agency coordinating emergency response activities.

The Health Department will monitor and quarantine anyone believed to have the virus for at least 14 days, the order said.

The order came the same day New York reported its first case and Washington state reported its second death, also the second death in the U.S.

New York Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo confirmed the state’s first case of coronavirus Sunday, announcing that a woman in her late 30s contracted the virus after traveling to Iran, the Washington Post reported.

President Donald Trump on Saturday extended a travel ban on Iran to apply to any foreign nationals who had been in that country over the past 14 days.

The global death toll due to the novel coronavirus is climbing toward 3,000 on four continents.

Most infections result in mild symptoms, including coughing and fever, though some can become more serious and lead to pneumonia. Older people, especially those with chronic illnesses such as heart or lung disease, are especially vulnerable.

Health officials think it spreads mainly from droplets when an infected person coughs or sneezes, similar to how the flu spreads.

The number of coronavirus cases in the United States is considered small. But convinced that they will grow, health agencies are ramping up efforts to identify those who might be sick.

To achieve more rapid testing capacity, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued an accelerated policy Saturday enabling laboratories to use tests they develop.

FDA Commissioner Stephen Hahn said his agency is “rapidly responding and adapting to this dynamic and evolving situation.”