Houston Chronicle

County seeks to combat myths about coronaviru­s

- By Zach Despart STAFF WRITER zach.despart@chron.com

Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo on Tuesday announced the creation of a web page to combat disinforma­tion about the coronaviru­s that is sparking health fears around the world.

There are no reported cases of the flu-like virus in the Houston area or Texas, though Hidalgo said online rumors suggesting otherwise have caused unnecessar­y fear in the community.

“We’ll continue watching social media, and debunking myths, because we don’t want falsehoods to spread,” Hidalgo said. “It causes unnecessar­y concern and it’s just wrong.”

She said the page on the county’s readyharri­s.org website would help residents separate facts from fiction about the virus. Developed

with the help of the county health department, she said the web page would be a trusted source of health informatio­n.

Worldwide, more than 40,000 people have been infected by the coronaviru­s. China, where the outbreak began, has reported more than 1,000 deaths related to the virus, which causes upper respirator­y infections. The World Health Organizati­on has declared the outbreak a global public health emergency.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has confirmed 13 cases in the United States.

Dr. Umair Shah, executive director of Harris County Public Health, said local Asian businesses have experience­d severe drops in customers, which he attributed to an unfounded panic around coronaviru­s.

“There have been some specific, very hate-driven, offensive comments driven toward the Asian community,” Shah said. “In Chinatown and southwest Harris County, they reported to us grocery stores and restaurant­s have seen 50, 60 70 percent decreases in traffic.”

Shah said he wants to combat fears of coronaviru­s so residents who worry they may have the disease will seek medical treatment and report their cases to the county.

While the county is at low risk for coronaviru­s, February is the height of flu season. Hidalgo urged residents to take commonsens­e health precaution­s by covering coughs, staying home when sick and washing their hands.

 ?? Marie D. De Jesús / Staff photograph­er ?? County Judge Lina Hidalgo reassures residents during a Feb. 4 news conference that there are no cases of coronaviru­s in Harris County.
Marie D. De Jesús / Staff photograph­er County Judge Lina Hidalgo reassures residents during a Feb. 4 news conference that there are no cases of coronaviru­s in Harris County.

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