Community COVID Case In Humboldt County California

[niman]

This marks the first confirmed case of the novel coronavirus in Humboldt County. Presently, the ill individuals are doing well and self-isolating at home, while being monitored for symptoms by the Public Health Communicable Disease Surveillance and Control Unit. Close contacts of these individuals will also be quarantined at home and monitored for symptoms by Public Health staff. With the amount of foreign travel by county residents, including travel to China, it is not surprising that a case has emerged locally.

https://humboldtgov.org/DocumentCenter/View/84006/20200220---News-Release---COVID-19inHumboldt-PDF

[niman]

Feb. 20, 2020

First case of COVID-19 confirmed in Humboldt County

The Humboldt County Department of Health & Human Services Public Health Branch has received confirmation from the California Department of Public Health and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) of one case of COVID-19 in a Humboldt County resident. A close contact who has symptoms is being tested as well.

This marks the first confirmed case of the novel coronavirus in Humboldt County. Presently, the ill individuals are doing well and self-isolating at home, while being monitored for symptoms by the Public Health Communicable Disease Surveillance and Control Unit. Close contacts of these individuals will also be quarantined at home and monitored for symptoms by Public Health staff.

With the amount of foreign travel by county residents, including travel to China, it is not surprising that a case has emerged locally. Additional cases may occur either in returning travelers or their close contacts. “It’s important to remember that the risk to the general public remains low at this time,” said Humboldt County Health Officer Dr. Teresa Frankovich.

“Despite the fact that Humboldt County now has a confirmed case of COVID-19, there is no evidence to suggest that novel coronavirus is circulating in the community at large.” Frankovich added that transmission in the U.S. to date has been among close contacts and not among the general public.

Public Health suggests the following precautions to prevent the spread of COVID-19 and all infectious diseases, including common illnesses like colds and flu:

• Stay home when you are sick

• If you have a fever, stay home or go home if you are already at work or school, and stay home for at least 24 hours after you no longer have a fever (without the use of fever-reducing medicine).

• Wash your hands frequently and particularly before eating or drinking.

• Promote good hand hygiene in your home by educating household members and making sure soap, hand sanitizers, and tissues are available.

• Avoid touching your face, particularly your eyes, nose and mouth.

• Encourage proper cough etiquette. Cough or sneeze into a tissue, sleeve or arm. Do not use your hands.

• Perform routine surface cleaning, particularly for items which are frequently touched such as doorknobs, handles, remotes, keyboards and other commonly shared surfaces.

The county’s Communicable Disease Surveillance and Control Unit will continue to provide updated information about COVID-19 to health care providers, hospitals and schools, as well as the general public.

For updated information about COVID-19, please continue to check the https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/.

If you are ill and in need of medical care and have been in China within the previous two weeks or have been in contact with an individual who has COVID-19, please contact your health care provider or emergency department before presenting for care. Arrangements will be made to have you evaluated in the safest manner possible for health care staff and other patients. -###-

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Edited February 21, 2020 by niman

[niman]

Media Statement                                                                     

 
For Immediate Release

Wednesday, February 26, 2020

Contact: CDC Media Relations

(404) 639-3286

 

CDC Confirms Possible Instance of Community Spread of COVID-19 in U.S.

 

 

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has confirmed an infection with the virus that causes COVID-19 in California in a person who reportedly did not have relevant travel history or exposure to another known patient with COVID-19.

 

At this time, the patient’s exposure is unknown.  It’s possible this could be an instance of community spread of COVID-19, which would be the first time this has happened in the United States. Community spread means spread of an illness for which the source of infection is unknown. It’s also possible, however, that the patient may have been exposed to a returned traveler who was infected.

 

This case was detected through the U.S. public health system — picked up by astute clinicians. This brings the total number of COVID-19 cases in the United States to 15.

 

The federal government has been working closely with state, local, tribal, and territorial partners, as well as public health partners, to respond to this public health threat. Unprecedented, aggressive efforts have been taken to contain the spread and mitigate the impact of this virus.

 

This is a rapidly evolving situation. CDC will continue to update the public as circumstances warrant.  For more information about COVID-19 visit www.cdc.gov/covid19. 

[niman]

Feb 25, 2020

Second patient test ‘indeterminate’ for COVID-19

A second case of COVID-19 in Humboldt County has not been confirmed because the individual involved has tested “indeterminate” for the virus.

Humboldt County Health Officer Dr. Teresa Frankovich said, “Regardless, we are managing the second individual exactly the same as the confirmed case as we have from the start.”

As announced last week, Humboldt County has one confirmed case of COVID-19 in a local resident.

Both the positive and indeterminate sets of results were confirmed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

 

https://humboldtgov.org/DocumentCenter/View/84092/20200225---News-Release---Second-patient-test-indeterminate-for-COVID-19-PDF

Edited February 27, 2020 by niman

[niman]

news release _________________________________________________________________________________

Feb. 25, 2020

Second patient test ‘indeterminate’ for COVID-19

A second case of COVID-19 in Humboldt County has not been confirmed because the individual involved has tested “indeterminate” for the virus.

Humboldt County Health Officer Dr. Teresa Frankovich said, “Regardless, we are managing the second individual exactly the same as the confirmed case as we have from the start.”

As announced last week, Humboldt County has one confirmed case of COVID-19 in a local resident.

Both the positive and indeterminate sets of results were confirmed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

The ill individuals are doing well and continue to remain in isolation at home while being monitored for symptoms by the Humboldt County Department of Health & Human Services Public Health Branch Communicable Disease Surveillance and Control Unit.

Frankovich said home isolation is the preferred management approach for people who do not need hospital-level care. “It both conserves our health care resources and decreases the risk of exposures to health care workers, other patients and the community,” she said.

As noted by the CDC, the potential public health threat posed by COVID-19 is high, both globally and to the United States. The fact that this disease has caused illness, including illness resulting in death, and sustained person-to-person spread in some countries has health officials concerned.

Frankovich stated that there is much the scientific community does not yet know about this virus and how it behaves, but more is learned every day. “We do know that it can cause mild, flu-like symptoms in some people and severe respiratory symptoms in others. We also know that the risk of getting the infection is dependent on exposure. Due to the current limited number of cases in the U.S., the risk of exposure for the general public remains low at this time, according to the CDC.

Frankovich said, “Let’s face it, going forward, the big question most of us in the U.S. have is, ‘how worried do I need to be about this outbreak?’

Unfortunately, the answer right now is not clear. Many factors determine how big an impact a new virus strain may have.”

The CDC says the most important are:

1) Clinical severity, or how serious is the illness associated with infection. When an outbreak occurs, typically it is the most vulnerable individuals—those who are older or have a chronic disease—who become ill first. Only the sickest come to medical attention. This means that the people most likely to be counted are also the most likely to fare poorly, so initial death rates appear high. Frankovich said because of the speed at which COVID-19 unfolded in China, and the need to deal with the seriously ill first, it is likely there are thousands of individuals with only mild, cold-like symptoms who have never been included in case counts. “Bottom line, to really know what percent of people who have the infection actually die from it, you need a pretty good idea of how many people actually had the infection,” Frankovich said. “This information will become more clear over time and particularly as we are able to evaluate outcome information from additional countries, including our own.”

2) Transmissibility, or how easily the pandemic virus spreads from person-toperson. In China and some other countries, there is clearly transmission occurring at the community level. This means individuals who have no known exposure to a confirmed case of COVID-19 have become ill. To date, this is not occurring in the U.S., but this will very likely change over time, according to the CDC.

3) And, finally, is there effective treatment or a vaccine to prevent the infection? The CDC states that there is currently no vaccine to prevent COVID-19. Scientists are working hard to change that situation, but it will take some time. Fortunately, Frankovich said our health care systems offer excellent supportive care for ill individuals. Anti-viral medication for use is also being investigated. Right now, the approach of quarantining individuals with exposures and monitoring them for symptoms, as well as isolating individuals who are confirmed cases, is intended to slow the spread of illness in the U.S., Frankovich said. Slowing spread gives the scientific community time to study this infection and develop effective strategies for containing, treating and eventually preventing infection through vaccination. “The world has become a much smaller place due to air travel which can take us across the planet in hours,” Frankovich said. “COVID-19 is not the first and will not be the last new virus strain to emerge, and that is why continual surveillance for emerging illnesses and maintaining or expanding our capacity to respond is so critical to the health and safety of our communities.”

For more information about COVID-19, please call Public Health during normal business hours at 707-445-6200, or visit Humboldt Health Alert at www.humboldtgov.org/HumboldtHealthAlert. -

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