Los Angeles: New coronavirus case in California could be the first in the U.S. that has no known connection to travel abroad or another known case, a possible sign the virus is spreading in a U.S. community.
California officials said the person is a resident of Solano County, northeast of San Francisco, and is getting medical care in Sacramento County. They said they have begun the process of tracking down people who the patient has been in contact with, a process known as contact tracing.
The patient was brought to UC Davis Medical Center from another Northern California hospital on Feb. 19 but it was four days before the Centre for Disease Control heeded a request to test the patient for COVID-19.
The patient arrived on a ventilator and special protection orders were issued “because of an undiagnosed and suspected viral condition.”
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The hospital asked the CDC to test for the coronavirus but testing was delayed until Sunday since the patient did not fit the existing CDC criteria for COVID-19.
The hospital, which has treated other coronavirus patients, has been taking infection prevention precautions since the patient arrived. The officials believe there was only a small chance that others at the facility were exposed to the virus.
All of the 59 other cases in the U.S. had traveled from abroad or had been in close contact with those who traveled. Health officials have been on high alert for so-called community spread.
The outbreak, which began in China, has infected tends of thousands of people in more than three dozen countries, with the vast majority in mainland China. The new virus is a member of the coronavirus family that can cause colds or more serious illnesses such as SARS and MERS.
(With inputs from PTI)
