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Brazil press secretary, Fabio Wajngarten, being tested due to COVID symptoms, was with President Trump and Vice President Pence at Mar-a-Lago last weekend.

Mar 11 WHO Declares Pandemic Presidential oval office speech European sans UK travel ban Failure to understand the definition of pandemic Market reaction NBA shutdown March madness without live audience Tom Hanks confirmed in Australia (where he can be tested) Sen Cantwell's aid positive in Washington DC office Return of SARS CoV in fall Pattern of pandemics (will be more severe in fall) http://mediaarchives.gsradio.net/rense/special/rense_031120_hr3.mp3

Maryland DoH confirms first Baltimore Co case who worked at AIPAC conference in Washington DC https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=857275651402172&id=191047324691678

A staff member in Sen. Maria Cantwell's Washington D.C. office has been diagnosed with coronavirus, marking the first known confirmed case of coronavirus on Capitol Hill. Cantwell will close her office in D.C. this week and her staff will work remotely. The Washington State Democrat is asking that additional staffers be tested. https://www.politico.com/news/2020/03/11/staffer-in-sen-maria-cantwells-dc-office-tests-positive-for-coronavirus-126724

The NBA has suspended its season due to the novel coronavirus outbreak. The announcement came after a confusing mid-game suspension of play between the Utah Jazz and Oklahoma City Thunder. The NBA announced a player tested positive for coronavirus, and said it will now be indefinitely halting games following Wednesday night's schedule. MORE: Coronavirus map: Tracking the spread in the US and around the world "The NBA announced that a player on the Utah Jazz has preliminarily tested positive for COVID-19<' the league said in a statement. "The test result was reported shortly prior to the tip-off of tonight’s game between the Jazz and Oklahoma City Thunder at Chesapeake Energy Arena. At that time, tonight’s game was canceled. The affected player was not in the arena." "The NBA is suspending game play following the conclusion of tonight’s schedule of games until further notice," it added. "The NBA will use this hiatus to determine next steps for moving forward in regard to the coronavirus pandemic." ESPN NBA reporter Adrian Wojnarowski reported Rudy Gobert was the player from the Jazz who tested positive. The center was an All Star for Utah in 2020. 18.2K people are talking about this The league had discussed playing games in empty arenas, a decision star LeBron James had spoken out against. On Wednesday, Golden State Warriors guard Steph Curry responded to reports games at the Chase Center in San Francisco would be played without fans after the mayor banned gatherings over 1,000 people. "Everything about our routines is reliant upon that kind of game day energy. Pulling up to the arena, seeing fans outside of Chase walking around in all the Warrior jerseys, even energy in the building, you can feel it all the way through the locker room, through the tunnel," Curry said at practice. "The only thing is try to have a conversation about how you raise your level of intensity from the jump because you don't have that actual adrenaline rush of playing in front of 18,000 people like that." MORE: Coronavirus and sports: Fans banned from March Madness games and other impacted events Most NBA teams had about 15 to 20 games left. The regular season was set to end April 15 with the playoffs to begin three days later. The NCAA said earlier in the day that all of its basketball tournament games would be played without fans. ABC News' Emily Shapiro contributed to this report. https://abcnews.go.com/Sports/nba-suspends-season-due-coronavirus/story?id=69547659

Dow futures drop 900 points as Trump speech disappoints investors PUBLISHED WED, MAR 11 20206:06 PM EDTUPDATED 11 MIN AGO Fred Imbert@FOIMBERT Thomas Franck@TOMWFRANCK Futures contracts tied to the major U.S. stock indexes fell on Wednesday night after an address from President Donald Trump failed to quell concerns over the possible economic slowdown from the coronavirus. The move comes after the Dow Jones Industrial Average ended its historic 11-year bull market run by closing in a bear market. Dow futures were down 900 points, indicating a loss of about 860 points at Thursday’s open. S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 futures were also sharply lower. Dow futures drop 900 points as Trump speech disappoints investors PUBLISHED WED, MAR 11 20206:06 PM EDTUPDATED 11 MIN AGO Fred Imbert@FOIMBERT Thomas Franck@TOMWFRANCK Traders work before the closing bell at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) on February 28, 2020. Johannes Eisele | AFP | Getty Images Futures contracts tied to the major U.S. stock indexes fell on Wednesday night after an address from President Donald Trump failed to quell concerns over the possible economic slowdown from the coronavirus. The move comes after the Dow Jones Industrial Average ended its historic 11-year bull market run by closing in a bear market. Dow futures were down 900 points, indicating a loss of about 860 points at Thursday’s open. S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 futures were also sharply lower. In his address, Trump announced travel from Europe will be suspended for 30 says as part of the government’s response to the coronavirus. Trump also said the administration would provide financial relief for workers who are ill, caring for other due to the virus or are quarantined. However, these announcements were not enough for investors who were looking for a more robust fiscal response to curb potentially slower economic growth.

Futures contracts tied to the major U.S. stock indexes fell on Wednesday night after an address from President Donald Trump failed to quell concerns over the possible economic slowdown from the coronavirus. https://www.cnbc.com/2020/03/11/futures-are-steady-wednesday-night-after-dow-closes-in-bear-market-traders-await-trump.html

Coronavirus cases tick up to 95 in Massachusetts The state reported three new cases on Wednesday BOSTON MA. – MARCH 10: Gov. Charlie Baker holds an availability at the State House to address the state’s response to the coronavirus on March 10, 2020 in Boston, MA. (Staff Photo By Nancy Lane/MediaNews Group/Boston Herald) By RICK SOBEY | [email protected] | Boston Herald March 11, 2020 at 4:51 p.m. A total of 95 people have tested positive coronavirus in Massachusetts, state health officials announced on Wednesday. The state Department of Public Health reported three new coronavirus cases — a significant rate decrease from the doubling of cases earlier this week. Six of the cases are now confirmed — an increase from one confirmed case on Tuesday — and 89 are presumptive positive cases. Out of the 95 cases in Massachusetts, 77 cases are connected to the Biogen employee meeting held in late February in Boston’s Seaport. Gov. Charlie Baker on Tuesday announced a state of emergency because of the coronavirus outbreak.

Out of the 95 cases in Massachusetts, 77 cases are connected to the Biogen employee meeting held in late February in Boston’s Seaport. https://www.bostonherald.com/2020/03/11/coronavirus-cases-tick-up-to-95-in-massachusetts/

Our knowledge of COVID-19 is still rapidly evolving. The risk assessment will be updated as needed. 2019 Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) in Washington County* Positive (confirmed) * † Deaths Clark 1 0 Grant 1 1 Island 1 0 Jefferson 1 0 King 234 26 Kitsap 2 0 Kittitas 2 0 Pierce 17 0 Skagit 1 0 Snohomish 68 2 Thurston 1 0 Whatcom 1 0 Unassigned 36 0 Total 366 29 * Note: This data is changing rapidly as labs conduct tests and discover new cases. Labs will then assign those cases to a county. At that point, counties or the Department of Health determine the appropriate county of jurisdiction. Those don’t always match initially. We’re currently working to reduce the “unassigned” number to 0. https://www.doh.wa.gov/Emergencies/Coronavirus

Mar 10 Biogen outbreak in Boston 70 confirmed in MA Many more states and countries Compare to Metropole Hotel in Hong Kong in 2003 This year sequence was known early Explosion in Europe was know, along with spread from Italy Employees went to MGH but couldn't get tested - LAST WEEK! Testing still limited in US WHO should have declared a pandemic long ago New sequences from Diamond Princess and Grand Princess US and Japan passengers did not match on Diamond Princess Seattle sequence on Grand Princess but at least two lineages http://mediaarchives.gsradio.net/rense/special/rense_031020_hr3.mp3

As of Wednesday, 114 countries have reported that 118,000 have contracted Covid-19, the disease caused by the virus, known as SARS-CoV2. In the United States, where for weeks state and local laboratories could not test for the virus, just over 1,000 cases have been diagnosed and 29 people have died. But authorities here warn continuing limits on testing mean the full scale of spread in this country is not yet known. Support STAT: If you value our coronavirus coverage, please consider making a one-time contribution to support our journalism. The virus causes mild respiratory infections in about 80% of those infected, though about half will have pneumonia. Another 15% develop severe illness and 5% need critical care. “Describing the situation as a pandemic does not change WHO’s assessment of the threat posed by this coronavirus,” Tedros said at the WHO’s headquarters in Geneva, in making the announcement. “It doesn’t change what WHO is doing, and it doesn’t change what countries should do.” At the same time, Tedros said: “This is not just a public health crisis, it is a crisis that will touch every sector — so every sector and every individual must be involved in the fight.” The virus, which probably originated in bats but passed to people via an as yet unrecognized intermediary animal species, is believed to have started infecting people in Wuhan, China, in late November or early December. Since then the virus has raced around the globe. While China appears on the verge of stopping its outbreak — it reported only 24 cases on Tuesday — outbreaks are occurring and growing in a number of locations around the world including Italy, Iran and the United States. South Korea, which has reported nearly 8,000 cases, also appears poised to bring its outbreak under control with aggressive measures and widespread testing. But other countries have struggled to follow the leads of China and South Korea — a reality that has frustrated WHO officials who have exhorted the world to do everything possible to end transmission of the virus. “The bottom line is: We’re not at the mercy of the virus,” Tedros said on Monday. “The great advantage is that the decisions we all make as governments, businesses, communities, families and individuals can influence the trajectory of this epidemic.” “The rule of the game is: Never give up,” he insisted. The WHO has been criticized and second-guessed for not declaring the outbreak a pandemic sooner. Mike Ryan, head of the agency’s health emergencies program, admitted in a press conference on Monday that the agency fears that countries may interpret a pandemic declaration as a sign efforts to contain the virus have failed and they no longer need to try. “For me, I’m not worried about the word. I’m more concerned about that the world’s reaction will be to that word. Will we use it as a call to action? Will we use it to fight? Or will we use it to give up?” Ryan asked. About the Authors Helen Branswell Senior Writer, Infectious Disease Helen covers issues broadly related to infectious diseases, including outbreaks, preparedness, research, and vaccine development. [email protected] @HelenBranswell Andrew Joseph General Assignment Reporter Andrew is a general assignment reporter. [email protected] @DrewQJoseph

The World Health Organization on Wednesday declared the rapidly spreading coronavirus outbreak a pandemic, acknowledging what has seemed clear for some time — the virus will likely spread to all countries on the globe. Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the situation will worsen. “We expect to see the number of cases, the number of deaths, and the number of affected countries climb even higher,” said Tedros, as the director general is known. https://www.statnews.com/2020/03/11/who-declares-the-coronavirus-outbreak-a-pandemic/

Mar 9 Italy lock down Explosive spread Expanded testing Quest and LabCorp NY Goal of 10,000 tests per day Insurance coverage CDC Conference call CPAC AIPAC Spread to Los Angeles. Cleveland, Toronto CFR SARS vs COVID-19 SARS Pneumonia only http://mediaarchives.gsradio.net/rense/special/rense_030920_hr3.mp3

How the Biogen leadership conference in Boston spread the coronavirus Updated March 10, 2020, an hour ago 42 Biogen's building in Cambridge.JONATHAN WIGGS/GLOBE STAFF This story was reported by Andy Rosen, Hanna Krueger, Kay Lazar, Jonathan Saltzman, Liz Kowalczyk, and Mark Arsenault of the Globe staff. It was written by Arsenault. It opened with breakfast, at 7 a.m., in the Harbor View Ballroom of the Boston Marriott Long Wharf hotel, where a wide bank of windows offers a sublime view across the inner harbor, steel gray on a cloudy morning, to Logan Airport in the distance. About 175 executives were expected at the Biogen leadership conference on Feb. 26. Employees from Biogen locations around the United States and the world reunited with colleagues they don’t often get to see. They greeted each other enthusiastically, with handshakes and hugs, and then caught up over breakfast, picking from plates of pastries and the self-serve hot food bar. They were there for two days of discussions and presentations about the future of the Cambridge-based, multinational biotech firm, which develops therapies for neurological diseases. It was the kind of under-the-radar gathering that happens in this region just about every week. Within days, though, the Biogen conference would be infamous, identified as an epicenter of the Massachusetts outbreak of Covid-19, with 70 of 92 coronavirus infections in the state linked to the conference as of Tuesday night, including employees and those who came into contact with them. That doesn’t include a cascade of individual cases in Tennessee, North Carolina, Indiana, New Jersey, Washington, D.C., and Norway, and suspected cases in Germany, Austria, and Argentina. The virus raced through this two-day conference at a frightening speed that state health officials and company executives were unable to match. As one of the biggest and best-known biotech firms in Massachusetts and public health authorities in one of the nation’s premier medical communities struggled to connect the dots, dozens of Biogen employees were developing symptoms of the dangerous disease — even as they traveled around Boston, the country, and the world. Concerns about holding large gatherings were already circulating locally at least a week before the Biogen conference. Massachusetts had detected its first coronavirus case on Feb. 1 — a man in his 20s who had flown back from Wuhan, China, where the virus was widespread. On Feb. 19, the Japanese tech company Sony announced that due to concern about infections it would skip the annual PAX East gaming expo at the Boston Convention & Exhibition Center, Feb. 27- March 1. Biogen spokesman David Caouette said he is unaware of any internal discussions about canceling the Biogen conference due to the global spread of the virus. “At the time of the meeting, we were absolutely following national guidance on travel and in-person meetings,” Caouette said in a statement. Guests at the Long Wharf conference included people from Italy, a country where the virus had spread, but not people who had been to China, where it originated late last year, he said. After a day of highly technical presentations on Wednesday, Feb. 26, many of the Biogen attendees gathered at 6:30 p.m. at the State Room, a few blocks away at 60 State St., for dinner and awards. The conference picked up Thursday morning and went half a day, concluding in the afternoon, when attendees headed for the airport or home. By Saturday night, signs of trouble were emerging. One Biogen executive reported feeling sick, and planned to seek treatment at Massachusetts General Hospital in the morning, according to a person familiar with the company. That executive was told on Sunday that a coronavirus test was not warranted under existing criteria, the executive told colleagues on Sunday. Advertisement RELATED: For workers in the time of coronavirus, a troubling choice: work sick, or lose pay? On Monday, another Biogen employee from the conference attended a Naples, Fla., executive round-table, held by the consulting giant PwC. According to Biogen, that employee had flu-like symptoms while at the event. Biogen would not say whether that person has since tested positive ― it declines to discuss individual cases. But PwC said in a statement that it is taking the potential interaction very seriously, informing "all participants who attended our PwC event that one of the participants was in proximity to individuals who have tested positive for COVID-19.” Biogen chief medical officer Maha Radhakrishnan on Monday sent a message to people who attended the Boston conference advising them to see a doctor if they felt ill. By Tuesday morning, March 3, more executives who had been at the Boston conference were not feeling well, according to the person with knowledge of the company, who asked not to be identified because of the sensitivity of the situation. Some of them had gone to MGH or to their doctors to request coronavirus testing, only to be rebuffed because they did not meet the federal government criteria for a test, which at the time was a set of symptoms in addition to recent travel to a breakout area or contact with someone known to have the virus. Advertisement Biogen officials reached out to public health authorities in Massachusetts on March 3, according to a document obtained by the Globe, to report a cluster of about 50 conference attendees with flu-like symptoms in this region and overseas. Those officials were told that the cases did not satisfy requirements for testing. RELATED: Coronavirus: Take a look at how Greater Boston communities have been disrupted Massachusetts Public Health Commissioner Dr. Monica Bharel said in a Tuesday news conference that she is unable to pinpoint exactly when her department learned that people who attended the Biogen conference were ill with Covid-19, and how quickly the agency acted after that to test others who attended the conference or were in contact with those attendees. All the days are “blurring together,” Bharel said. Another person familiar with the events, who asked to remain anonymous because they are not cleared to speak on the issue, confirmed that Biogen’s chief medical officer first contacted the state public health department the morning of March 3. Biogen told DPH that day that a cluster of people who attended the conference were ill, according to the unnamed person. RELATED: A list of area colleges canceling classes, sending students home due to coronavirus fears Biogen called the DPH again the next day, March 4, according to the person familiar with these events, and alerted DPH that at least two people from Europe who were at the conference had tested positive for Covid-19. That same day, a “significant number" of people from Biogen — though still fewer than 10 — came to the Emergency Department at MGH asking for coronavirus tests, said Dr. Paul Biddinger, chief of the division of emergency preparedness at the hospital. Advertisement MGH had not been informed previously of the Biogen meeting or that people had been exposed to the virus. “There was concern that there may be many more coming,” Biddinger said. Too many Biogen walk-ins, the hospital feared, could disrupt care for other patients. All the Biogen people got a medical evaluation but many did not have symptoms that would rise to an emergency; they just wanted testing, Biddinger said. “For each person, we talked to [Department of Public Health] staff about these patients and whether or not they meet testing criteria,” he said. “Some were tested and some were not.” Some of the Biogen walk-ins became “very frustrated” that they couldn’t get a test. “There were some challenging discussions,” Biddinger said. At 10 a.m. on March 5, senior Biogen leadership held a call with people who were at the Boston conference, reporting that three attendees had tested positive for Covid-19 outside of Massachusetts. RELATED: Coronavirus impacts will ripple across many Mass. sectors Several hours later, Biogen executive vice president Alphonse Galdes and Radhakrishnan sent out a message to people across the company describing the illnesses associated with the conference: “We wanted to inform you that an unexpected high number of attendees have reported varying degrees of flu-like symptoms (fever, headache, cough, body ache, chills, general fatigue, and malaise being among the most common symptoms reported),” the message said. It added that three attendees had tested positive for Covid-19. The message said the company could not identify the people who had tested positive, but that out of caution, Biogen wanted everyone who was at the conference to work from home. That information alarmed some employees, who were concerned about having been exposed to the illness in the days prior to the announcement, and were surprised that the company didn’t give employees a better handle on the situation sooner. Two people familiar with the company said a number employees got up and left after reading the e-mail, with many of them heading straight to MGH to request a test. RELATED: See all coronavirus coverage In an e-mail from the company Thursday evening, Biogen officials asked employees to refrain from going to MGH to be tested for the coronavirus. The e-mail said their efforts “are overwhelming the emergency room” and that hospital police may have to bar Biogen employees from entering the area. Biogen acknowledged for the first time on Thursday night that the coronavirus had been spread at its meeting the week before. By Friday, MGH and Brigham and Women’s set up temporary testing facilities in their ambulance bays to handle an influx of potential patients. The outbreak at Biogen rippled through the state’s close-knit biopharma industry, which employs about 74,000 people and is marbled with Biogen alumni. RELATED: Were you or someone you know at the Biogen meeting? Tell us what you know about it. Several of the Biogen executives from the Long Wharf conference also attended a health care event hosted by Cowen and Co. March 2-4, at the Boston Marriott Copley Place, including CEO Michel Vounatsos and other top officials. Cowen has since warned attendees of its event that Biogen informed Cowen that multiple individuals at the March 2 event have tested positive for Covid-19. Cowen spokesman Dan Gagnier directed inquiries to Biogen. Caouette, the Biogen spokesman, said in a statement that the company could not discuss the specifics of the cases, but he confirmed that multiple people from Biogen “who were at the March 2 Cowen investment conference in Boston" have tested positive. “Several of our colleagues are doing well and others are fighting this novel virus and living in isolation from their families. Knowing they are in pain, hurts each of us,” Vounatsos wrote in an e-mail to staff on Monday. “I am grateful for the courage our team has shown in this challenging time, working late into the night and in constant communication with public health partners. In particular, I want to thank our medical team for providing their expertise to support our employee’s safety and well-being.”

with 70 of 92 coronavirus infections in the state linked to the conference as of Tuesday night, including employees and those who came into contact with them. That doesn’t include a cascade of individual cases in Tennessee, North Carolina, Indiana, New Jersey, Washington, D.C., and Norway, and suspected cases in Germany, Austria, and Argentina. https://www.bostonglobe.com/2020/03/11/nation/how-biogen-leadership-conference-boston-spread-coronavirus/

South Dakota reports five confirmed cases of the coronavirus March 10, 2020 NewsCenter1 Staff UPDATE (4:10) — According to Gov. Kristi Noem there are five confirmed cases of COVID-19 across the state. One person from Pennington County has passed away and tests are ongoing to determine if COVID-19 was the primary cause of death. The other cases were found in Davidson County, Minnehaha County, Beadle County, and Charles Mix County. PIERRE, S.D. – Governor Kristi Noem today issued the following statement regarding COVID-19: “The state’s Public Health Laboratory in Pierre has confirmed the first presumptive positive cases of coronavirus in South Dakota,” said Noem. “The cases are travel related. While we wait for the CDC to conduct their confirmatory testing, the Department of Health staff is working to identify additional people who came in close contact with these individuals to decrease the spread of illness.” “Our team has been preparing for weeks, and I am confident we have the right people in place to address this fluid situation. Without panicking, I encourage all South Dakotans to take this seriously – now is the time to prepare and to stay informed.”

According to Gov. Kristi Noem there are five confirmed cases of COVID-19 across the state. One person from Pennington County has passed away and tests are ongoing to determine if COVID-19 was the primary cause of death. The other cases were found in Davidson County, Minnehaha County, Beadle County, and Charles Mix County. https://www.newscenter1.tv/potential-multiple-cases-of-coronavirus-in-south-dakota/

Nadine Dorries, a health minister, has become first MP to be diagnosed with coronavirus, The Times are reporting. Over the past week, the MP for Mid Bedfordshire came into contact with hundreds of people in parliament, and visited No 10 for a reception with Boris Johnson. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/global-health/science-and-disease/coronavirus-uk-news-latest-cases-italy-update-covid-19/?WT.mc_id=tmg_share_tw

Transcript - CDC Media Telebriefing: Update on COVID-19 Press Briefing Transcript Wednesday, March 10, 2020 Audio recording media icon[MP3 – 4 MB] Please Note: This transcript is not edited and may contain errors. Telebriefing Audio playstopskip-backwardskip-forwardvolume Volume Range Slider Scrub Range Slider I’d like to inform all participant that the phones are on listen only. Today’s call is recorded. If anyone has any objections, you can disconnect at this time. I would like to turn the call over to Paul Fulton with CDC public affairs. Thank you, you may begin. Thank you. Thank you all for joining us today for this briefing to update you on CDC’s COVID-19 response. We’re joined by Nancy Messonnier, director of CDC’s National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases. We’ll make opening remarks. I turn the call over to Dr. Messonnier. Good afternoon. Thank you all for joining us. As of today, there are more than 110,000 cases of COVID-19 worldwide. In the U.S., as of Sunday evening, 34 states plus New York City and D.C. have reported more than 500 cases of COVID-19 to CDC and 19 deaths. Nearly half of reported cases are in California and Washington. 18 of the deaths are in Washington. The remaining one is in California. Right now the states with the most cases are California and Washington. But other communities are also dealing with cases of COVID-19. That’s why I’d like to talk to you today in greater detail about risk. Risk can be looked at in two ways. There is risk of being exposed and getting sick from this virus and there is risk of getting very sick or dying from illness with this virus. This virus is capable of spreading easily and sustainably from person to person based on the available data. The report of the World Health Organization mission to China describes the virus as being highly contagious. And there’s essentially no immunity against this virus in the population because it’s a new virus. Based on this, it’s fair to say that as the trajectory of the outbreak continues, many people in the United States will at some point in time either this year or next be exposed to this virus and there’s a good chance many will become sick. But again, based on what we know about this virus, we do not expect most people to develop serious illness. Reports out of China that looked at more than 70,000 COVID-19 patients found that about 80% of illness had — was mild and people recovered. 15 to 20% developed serious illness. Let’s talk about who those people are. So far it seems like it’s not children. Of the 70,000 cases, only about 2% were in people younger than 19. This seems to be a disease that affects adults. And most seriously older adults. Starting at age 60, there is an increasing risk of disease and the risk increases with age. The highest risk of serious illness and death is in people older than 80 years. People with serious underlying health conditions also are more likely to develop serious outcomes including death. The people who are at greatest risk are those older and who also have serious long-term health conditions like diabetes, heart disease, or lung disease. Last week CDC added guidance to our website for people who are at higher risk for serious illness. Our goal is to protect you. This will require you and your family to take action. I’d like to go through our recommendations for people at highest risk. Make sure you have supplies on hand like routine medications for blood pressure and diabetes. And over-the-counter medicines and medical supplies to treat fever and other symptoms. Have enough household items and groceries so that you will be prepared to stay home for a period of time. Take everyday precautions like avoiding close contact with people who are sick, cleaning your hands often, and to the extent possible, avoid touching high touch surfaces in public places. Avoid crowds especially in poorly ventilated spaces. This weekend the federal government made a very specific recommendation in this context that travelers particularly those with underlying health issues defer all cruise ship travel worldwide. We also recommend that people at higher risk avoid nonessential travel such as long plane trips. Lastly, and most importantly, know what’s going on in your community. If you could end up in the role of helping to care for a family member or friend who is at greater risk, we recommend you familiarize yourself with your loved ones’ medication and help them get extra to have on hand. Help them also get food, medical supplies and other necessities so they can minimize trips to the store. Create a plan for if they get sick and if you get sick. You have to identify backups to take care of them. Everyone has a role to play to protect our family members, friends, colleagues, and neighbors who are at most risk. I understand these recommendations may not be popular and that maybe — and that they may be difficult for some people. At CDC, our number one priority is the health and safety of the American people. These are the kind of recommendations that I have made to my parents and I’m taking the appropriate steps recommended for family members of vulnerable people. Other staff at CDC are doing the same. We have more than 1,500 people who have worked on this response so far. And we take the health and safety of our employees very seriously. CDC is an essential component of the U.S. critical infrastructure on this response. To date no one in CDC’s workforce has tested positive for COVID-19. We will continue to work with the Office of Personal Management on federal government strategies and guidance. Some businesses and local governments are already taking similar measures. The point of these is to reduce exposures, reduce illness which in turn can protect our most vulnerable. But it’s also a strategy to keep workplaces up and running though on a modified basis. Government officials and public health departments will make decisions based on local conditions at the time. We urge you to follow their lead. Before I close, I want to give you an update on public lab capacity. 78 state and local public health labs across 50 states now have the capacity to test up to 75,000 people for COVID-19. We will have more information online this afternoon for clinicians on how to access the tests. The information will also be about the commercially available kits. However, we want to caution people that different states will have different capacity for testing as well as different policies about who should be tested. Lastly, I want to recognize and share your concern about the outbreak and what might happen here in the United States. We’ve gotten a lot of questions about events and conferences where cases have been identified. CDC is working with state and local public health departments to reach these people but we also want those who attended these functions to monitor themselves for COVID-19 symptoms and call their health care provider if they become ill. Especially if they’re in a high risk group. During an outbreak with the new virus, there is a lot of uncertainty. Our guidelines and recommendations are likely to be interim and subject to change as we learn more. We know that in South Korea no one under the age of 30 has died and in Japan no one under the age of 50 has died. Data from these countries help us understand the potential risk here in the U.S. That’s why it’s so important for older adults and people with serious underlying health conditions to be prepared. I’ll be happy to take questions now. If you’d like to ask a question, please press star 1. Record your name slowly and clearly. Your name is required to introduce your question. Our first question is from Tom Howell with the Washington Times, your line is open. The first publicly documented case in mid-January is someone that traveled from China to Washington. I want to know what about is there anything about that fact that speaks to what we’re seeing now in Washington state? I’m just wondering if contact tracers investigated that and if there is any link to what we’re seeing now. Thank you. Messonnier: You may remember that the response to that initial case in the United States was quite aggressive with the health department having the lead in CDC supporting them. They did very aggressive contact tracing looking to identify anybody who had had contact with that initial case and sort of concentric circles outward. They didn’t find any evidence of COVID-19 in any of those contacts. Now I think you’re probably referring to a publication that came out within the past couple of weeks looking at the genetic sequencing data of the initial patient versus — and comparing it to the cases that are now circulating in Washington state. And one hypothesis that the author made was that the changes between the initial case and now suggested that the strain had been circulating in the population. I think that’s an interesting hypothesis. But another hypothesis is that a secondary seeding of the community and the strain causing the more recent cases in Washington state matches sequences that have been posted from China. So I think that’s an interesting hypothesis. I expect we’ll see more of it. But there are alternate explanations of the same findings. Thank you. Next question, please. Thank you. Our next question comes from Issam Ahmed with AFP. Your line is open. Yeah. Thank you for doing this. I was wondering with regards to your advice about, you know, higher risk Americans inviting them to stock up on groceries and medicine at this point. Where would you draw that cutoff at this point? Is that for over 60? Thank you. Messonnier: Thanks for letting me clarify. You know, I want to clarify the reason to stock up is that there is a rational for being in a higher risk group wanting to avoid congregate settings. So it’s not — the reason to stock up now is so you can stick close to home. The reason I went into data in greater detail is because it’s important for the American public to understand the risk. We use the broad categories of over 60 or over 65, but the data really says that as you get older, the risk goes up and so in the broader age category of over 60 or over 65, over 80 or older has the greatest risk. So I would recommend that people make their own decisions based on an understanding of that risk. My parents are in their 80s. They’re not in an area where there is currently community transmission. But I’ve asked them to stick close to home so they can avoid the potential risk of being in congregate settings. Next question. Thank you. Our next question comes from Eben Brown with FOX news. Your line is open. Thank you very much for taking my call. I just want to piggyback on an earlier question. There is even just for my own personal goings about a lot of empty shelves in stores and things like that. There seems to be — I was in an airport the other day where someone had not just a regular old mask but like a big molded plastic mask with canisters on. There seems to be like a growing — I don’t want to say panic, but kind of headed that way. Is there a way that we all can provide some sobriety here because the last thing I think we all need is a panic but we want to be people vigilant and make the right decisions. Messonnier: I think that’s a really great point. And really important thing for the media to try to communicate. You know, right now in the United States most communities by far the vast majority of communities are not having community transmission. This is a time for people to prepare for what they might need to do but not a time for people to clear out the shelves. And I really want to focus on the United States and the families at highest risk because in the setting where it’s really clear that it is older Americans who are at the highest risk right now, we want to make sure that they’re taking every precaution to prepare themselves so that if there is more widespread transmission, they can stick close to home. In terms of masks, as you implied and I’ll say, we really do not think this is the time for Americans to be going out and getting masks. Masks are really important for those at highest risk in the health care setting and we want to make sure that we save enough masks for our health care workers on the front lines who will need to continue to be able to do their work and take care of all of us. So in particular in the setting of concern about masks, I ask people to please fight the urge to buy a mask and make sure we save them for the people that really need them. Next question. Thank you. Our next question comes from Andrew Joseph from STAT. Your line is open. Hi. Thanks. Can you elaborate a little more on how you all see this potentially playing out? Obviously, there are mitigation efforts and hopefully they work. But you’re saying many people will get exposed this year or next. So if you can just sort of explain what that might look like if it is kind of persists for months to years. Messonnier: Yeah. I think that as we said since the beginning, respiratory viruses that’s spread like this tend to spread. And what we as a community need to do is do everything we can to protect ourselves and our families and our communities so that the — if it does spread, it is in a slower fashion so that we’re all better prepared and so that our health care sector can take care of patients. We continue to believe that in most communities contact tracing is really appropriate because it identifies the contacts and keeping them from spreading can have a significant role in slowing this down. You likely will see in some communities like in Seattle and in California more efforts towards broad fed community mitigation as an attempt at a community level to slow this spread. I think we need to be — we need to make sure that we’re listening to our local health departments. I also think people need to understand that there are personal responsibilities that we’re asking everyone in the United States to take to make sure that they’re doing their best to protect themselves and their families and their communities and right now especially to make really strong efforts to protect those who are older and at underlying risk. As a community, the United States we can really mitigate the impact of this disease and as long as we work together that, will continue to be CDC’s goal. Next question, please. Thank you. Our next question comes from Lindsey Tanner with the Associated Press. Your line is open. Lindsey, your line is open. (No response) Our next question comes from Roni Rabin with the New York Times. Your line is open. Hi. Dr. Messonnier, can you be more specific by with have a high rate of diabetes and chronic conditions in people that are much younger than 80s, can you be more specific about people in their 40s and 50s should be doing and people in their 60s and 70s? Messonnier: I think it’s really important for us to stress as we have I think throughout the course of this that we are making recommendations based on the available data and when more data becomes available fine tuning them and trying not to get beyond what we know. What we know from the data is the highest risk is those in both older and with underlying health conditions. There are reports of individuals who are adults but with serious underlying health conditions who have also had more serious outcomes. And I think that if you’re in one of those groups separately or together that is underlying illness, underlying illness and older adult or underlying illness and younger, you need to be thinking towards what personal precautions you might want to take. And certainly for those with diabetes and high blood pressure, managing your diabetes and high blood pressure is a priority. When more data becomes available from our investigations in the United States and from our work globally investigating we’ll certainly provide more direct data. But right now, there is not data to be as precise as we’re asking. Next question, please. Thank you. Our next question comes from Brenda Goodman from WebMD. Your line is open. Hi, Dr. Messonnier, I was hoping that you could explain a little bit about the difference between containment and mitigation. And also tell us if there are any communities in the U.S. that have moved from containment to mitigation, for example, Seattle? And why. Messonnier: Sure. That’s a great question. I think it’s really important to make it really clear that this is not an on/off switch that you switch from one to the other. In general, containment means that you stop the spread. What it has meant in this setting is decreasing the number of potentially exposed people coming into the United States through border control. And then tracking every case and every potential contact, every case in order to keep them from spreading it further. So very much sort of what you would imagine when you think about person x had in contact with person y and person y had contact with six others and tracking down every one of those individuals and asking them to stay home, you can, we’ve seen you can keep it from spreading further. Mitigation is more community level interventions. And what that means is that you’re working to decrease the impact of the disease on a community. In Seattle and in California, they haven’t stopped entirely contact tracing but they have started mitigation. And I think that you will likely see local health departments deciding when there is community spread to start turning on more of the mitigation measures even while they’re still doing some level of contact tracing. So again, it’s not an on/off switch. It’s a dimmer. You will see I think lots more communities starting to implement some kind of mitigation measures when they’re seeing community spread. It will look different in different places and that’s why it’s really important for folks to stay informed of what is going on in their local area and to follow their advice of the local health department. We have time for three more questions. Next question, please. Thank you. Our next question comes from Jose Paliey with Univision. Your line is open. Hi, doctor. My question is New York City is an area with community transmission and earlier in the call you mentioned people should avoid crowds and poorly ventilated spaces. My question is what does that mean for subways and busses where commuters like myself are regularly pressing up against each other in very tighten closed spaces. Messonnier: Again, I think it’s really important for two different things. One is to pay attention to the recommendations from your local health department which are going to be more tailored to the specific situation in terms of spreading your community and the risks. In terms of avoiding crowded settings, our focus really is on those with the higher risk and oldest among us and especially those with underlying illnesses. So for people again, older and underlying illnesses, we are recommending avoiding crowds, congregate settings because those are places where in general there is lots of transmission of respiratory diseases. We’re asking individuals to be aware of the risks but individuals are going to have to make personal decisions based on their own situations. Next question, please. Thank you. Our next question comes from John Tozzi with Bloomberg News. Your line is open. Thank you for taking the question. I want to clarify. You said earlier that 78 state and local health labs have the capacity to test up to 75,000 people. Is that 75,000 in what period? Is that cumulative? Daily 75,000? Weekly? Messonnier: Cumulative. Again, it’s the public health sector CDC lab kits, 75,000 but more are coming onboard soon. 75,000 cumulatively. But, I think as you know the number of commercially available kits, the number of commercially available tests is much larger than that and our expectation within the next couple weeks is more and more commercial entities become – come onboard is the majority of the available testing will actually be from the commercial sector. Okay. Last question, please. Thank you. Our last question comes from Brianna Abbott with The Wall Street Journal. Your line is open. Hi. Thanks for taking my question. As you mentioned, there have been cases that are now starting to be linked to conferences and mass gatherings. Companies have taken steps to cancel these. I wonder from a public health perspective, is cancelling mass gatherings something we should broadly start doing or is that an overreaction? Where do we stand on that? Messonnier: It is really difficult to make those kind of pronouncements broadly. I think the thing at this point we’re recommending is consideration of the local situation, consideration of what is going on in the locale where the event is being held. But and also where people are coming from and what the event is and how big it is. So the decisions, for example, in Seattle may look quite different than the decisions being made in a location right now where there is not community spread. I think that we’re going to need to follow the local community’s lead. And again, a lot depends on the population. So we’re looking both at risk of exposure but also the risk to the individuals and as you look at those two factors together, in consultation with local and state health departments, decisions may be different in different events and different locations. Thank you, Dr. Messonnier and thank you all for joining us for today’s briefing. Please check CDC’s COVID-19 website for the latest updates on CDC’s response efforts. If you have more questions, please call our number or e-mail us. Thank you. That concludes today’s conference. Thank you for participating, you may disconnect at this time. https://www.cdc.gov/media/index.html

The statement was released a few hours after the Beth Sholom Synagogue reported that it will be closed Monday and Tuesday to allow staff to complete a “thorough” sanitization of the building. 106 people are talking about this Councillor in self-isolation after meeting lay leader with COVID-19 at Toronto synagogue Miriam KatawaziMulti-Platform Writer, CTV News Toronto @MiriamKatawazi Contact Published Monday, March 9, 2020 1:08PM EDTLast Updated Tuesday, March 10, 2020 11:52AM EDT TORONTO -- A Toronto councillor is going into self-isolation after visiting a Toronto synagogue where a lay leader has tested positive with COVID-19 shortly after returning from a conference in Washington. In a statement issued Monday, Councillor Josh Matlow said he met the lay leader during his visit to the Beth Sholom Synagogue, located on 1445 Eglinton Avenue West, on Thursday. “While I am completely asymptomatic, out of an abundance of caution … I am going into self-isolation until March 20th,” the councillor said. A spokesperson for the synagogue told CTV News Toronto on Monday that last week one of their lay leaders, who is a member of the congregation chosen as a leader, exhibited flu-like symptoms and got himself tested. “It showed positive for COVID-19,” the spokesperson said in a statement. “As a result, he was placed into a 14 day quarantine where he currently remains at home and is showing signs of recovery.” The man tested has not been to the synagogue since his diagnosis, the spokesperson said. He was confirmed to have been at the American Israel Public Affairs Committee conference in Washington. A number of other people, who attended the conference last week, have been confirmed to have the virus as well, according to media reports from the U.S. The synagogue is working with Toronto Public Health to ensure “the safety and security” of the congregation members. The building will reopen when the sanitization is complete, and services will resume, the spokesperson said, adding that out of an “abundance of caution,” they will cancel all celebrations, events, and general operations connected to Purim, a Jewish holiday. “Anyone who is coughing, sneezing and feeling unwell should not to come into the building and should seek medical guidance,” the spokesperson said. “The religious leadership, along with the synagogue’s volunteer lay leadership, are at home under self-isolation in order to protect the well-being of the community.” As of Monday morning, 34 people tested positive for COVID-19 in Ontario, including four patients who have recovered. https://toronto.ctvnews.ca/councillor-in-self-isolation-after-meeting-lay-leader-with-covid-19-at-toronto-synagogue-1.4845059

The New Jersey man hasn't been identified but health officials said he has underlying conditions including emphysema, hypertension and diabetes. He has no travel nexus to high-risk countries, but did work in New York. He initially survived one cardiac arrest but went into cardiac arrest for a second time Tuesday. The second time he could not be revived. He is among the now 15 presumptive positive cases in the Garden State. "Our prayers are with the family during this difficult time," Gov. Phil Murphy and Lt. Gov. Sheila Oliver said in a joint statement. "We remain vigilant to doing all we can -- across all levels of government -- to protect the people of New Jersey."

New Jersey has reported its first COVID-19-related death -- a 69-year-old man from Bergen County -- https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/nyc-adds-5-new-covid-19-cases-tri-state-total-more-than-triples-in-days/2319688/?fbclid=IwAR14KtFfHrOqYllGKdv8R8rby4voHRoAk9G9d-YrjLkp_skAWPnE8CD08qo