(WWJ/AP) While authorities worldwide take steps to contain a new contagious virus, there's good news in Michigan.
The final test results on a person in Washtenaw County are back, and they're negative for the the 2019 Novel Coronavirus, the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services said Friday.
That means that all of the four suspected cases in the state that were tested for coronavirus by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention came back negative.
Meanwhile, the CDC, MDHHS, local public health departments and the state's healthcare community continue to actively monitor the outbreak that originated in Wuhan, China.
As of Thursday, six people in the U.S. have been diagnosed with the virus; only one of them who caught in while in the U.S.
The U.S. on Friday declared a public health emergency and announced significant entry restrictions due to the virus.
Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar, who is coordinating the federal response, announced that President Donald Trump has signed an order that will temporarily bar entry to the U.S. of foreign nationals believed to be a risk of transmitting the virus. The new restrictions take effect at 5 p.m. EST on Sunday.
"The risk of infection for Americans remains low and with these and our previous actions we are working to keep the risk low," Azar said.
Americans returning from China will be allowed into the country, but will face screening at select ports of entry and required to undertake 14 days of self-screening to ensure they don't pose a health risk. Those returning from Hubei province, the center of the outbreak, will be subject to up to 14 days of mandatory quarantine.
Beginning Sunday, the U.S. will also begin funneling all flights to the U.S. from China to seven major airports where passengers can be screened for illness.
The virus has infected almost 10,000 people globally in just two months, a troublesome sign that prompted the World Health Organization to declare the outbreak a global emergency. The death toll stood at 213, including 43 new fatalities, all in China.
Coronaviruses are a large group of viruses common among animals and humans. In rare cases, the virus can be transmitted from animals to humans.
This novel coronavirus is a newly discovered version that has not been previously detected in animals or humans. The source is not yet known, officials said.
Patients with confirmed infection have reportedly had mild to severe respiratory illness with symptoms of fever, cough and shortness of breath.
The CDC believes at this time that symptoms may appear in as few as two days or as long as 14 days after exposure.
Anyone who believes that they have symptoms and have recently traveled to Wuhan, China, or have been in contact with someone who has had the virus, should call their healthcare provider or hospital prior to arriving so that the appropriate preventive measures can be put in place.
As information on this outbreak is changing rapidly, the public is urged to visit Michigan.gov/Coronavirus and CDC.gov/Coronavirus for updates.
