The World Health Organization has declared that the coronavirus outbreak constitutes a global health emergency. The declaraton can help galvanize international funding.
The new coronavirus has sickened moreThe WHO said in a statement that"all countries should be prepared for containment, including active surveillance, early detection, isolation and case management, contact tracing and prevention of onward spread" of the virus.
"There is no reason for measures that unnecessarily interfere with international travel and trade. WHO doesn't recommend limiting trade and movement," Tedros added. But the WHO also said that in certain circumstances, such as when there are many cases of transmission among a vulnerable population, such measures could be"temporarily useful."
The coronavirus drew worldwide attention after Chinese authorities began reporting cases of pneumonia in the eastern city of Wuhan last month. They were able to pinpoint the cause to a previously unknown strain. Other forms of coronavirus, such as SARS and MERS, have been responsible for past international outbreaks.
Health authorities believe this particular strain, known as 2019-nCoV, likely first spread from an animal. China's National Health Commission has said it is associated with exposure at a seafood market that also sold live animals in Wuhan. Since then, the virus has spread from Wuhan to countries around the world, including the United States, Japan, Singapore and Thailand."The vast majority of those cases are still associated with travel to Wuhan," said Dr. Michael Ryan, executive director of the WHO's health emergencies program.
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