2nd coronavirus case confirmed in US

A second U.S. case of the new coronavirus has been confirmed in a patient in Chicago, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The patient, a woman in her 60s and a Chicago resident, had traveled to Wuhan, China, in December. She was admitted to the hospital and is in stable condition, according to Illinois health officials.

“We understand that some people are worried about this virus and how it may impact Americans,” Dr. Nancy Messonnier, director of the CDC’s National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases said at a Friday news briefing.

“The immediate risk to the U.S. public is low at this time,” Messonnier said.

Sixty-three people in the U.S. are being evaluated to determine if they have coronavirus. Of those individuals, 11 have tested negative and two have tested positive for the virus. Patient samples are currently being tested at the CDC in Atlanta, and health officials are working to get those tests to states, which would speed diagnosis times.

This announcement comes as the U.S. State Department is warning Americans not to enter China’s Hubei province due to the coronavirus, as Chinese authorities announced Thursday that the death toll from the virus has increased to 25.

The U.S. is also pulling out most of its diplomats and their families from the consulate general in Wuhan, the Hubei city of 11 million where cases of the new virus were first discovered.

The State Department issued a new travel advisory late Thursday, declaring the Hubei region Level 4, Do Not Travel, the strongest of the four travel warning levels issued by the U.S. government. That puts it on par with hot spots and war zones like North Korea, Syria, and Iran.

China’s National Health Commission announced Thursday that the death toll from the virus has increased to 25 from the previously-reported total of 17.

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