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12:45 pm: United Airlines to suspend some China flights
United Airlines plans to suspend some China flights next month because of a “significant decline in demand” to the country as it battles the growing number of coronavirus cases. United has more service to China than any other U.S. airline. The flight cancellations take effect Feb. 1 and last through Feb. 8. It wasn’t immediately clear if United would cancel more flights.
11:24 am: Trump administration expands coronavirus screening to 20 US airports
U.S. Health Secretary Alex Azar warned that the coronavirus raging across mainland China is a “potentially very serious public health threat,” adding that the Trump administration is expanding screening for the virus from five to 20 U.S. airports. “We are constantly preparing for the possibility that the situation could worsen,” Azar said during a press briefing.
11:15 am: US health officials hold press conference on the coronavirus outbreak
Top U.S. health officials and infectious disease specialists held a press conference Tuesday morning on the coronavirus outbreak. The briefing, hosted by U.S. Health Secretary Alex Azar, was held at the agency’s headquarters in Washington, D.C. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Robert Redfield will also speak, as well as representatives from the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Disease and the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. Watch the full press conference here.
11:03 am: White House discussing China travel restrictions amid coronavirus outbreak
10:22 am: Germany confirms first human-to-human transmission outside of China
Germany has diagnosed its first confirmed case of the coronavirus after a 33-year-old man contracted it from a colleague visiting his workplace from Shanghai, in one of the first cases of human-to-human transmission outside China, raising concerns about the spread of the flu-like virus. It spreads in droplets from coughs and sneezes and has an incubation period of 1 to 14 days.
10:14 am: 3M ramps up production of masks to meet coronavirus demand
The CEO of industrial giant 3M Mike Roman said Tuesday that the company is increasing production of its respiratory protection products, such as masks, to meet demand caused by the outbreak of coronavirus. Roman said on a conference call for 3M’s fourth quarter results that the company is raising production around the world to make more of the products.
9:14 am: CDC expands travel warning to all of China
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is telling Americans to avoid all non-essential travel to China, expanding its travel warning from the city of Wuhan to the entire country as the coronavirus outbreak worsens. Last week, the CDC advised against all nonessential travel to Wuhan, the epicenter of the disease’s outbreak and where the majority of cases have been reported. The U.S. Department of State on Monday also raised its travel advisory for China from Level 2 to Level 3 asking Americans to “reconsider travel to China due to the novel coronavirus.” They added that some areas have “added risk.”
8:03 am: Death toll of coronavirus surpasses 100
The total number of cases of the coronavirus reached 4,682 worldwide with 106 deaths in China, Chinese health authorities said Tuesday. The majority of the cases are in mainland China, where local authorities have quarantined at least 10 major cities. Multiple cases of the virus have been confirmed in Hong Kong, Macao, Taiwan, Thailand, Vietnam, South Korea, Singapore, Malaysia, Japan, Australia, France and the United States. Cambodia, Canada, Germany, Nepal and Sri Lanka have each reported one case.
7:52 am: Former FDA chief worries the outbreak is worse than China is reporting
5:33 am: Goldman Sachs instructs staff in mainland China to stay home
A patient is transferred by an ambulance to the Infectious Disease Centre of Princess Margaret Hospital on January 22, 2020 in Hong Kong, China.
Anthony Kwan | Getty Images
