Coronavirus Has Become a Public Health Emergency – What Does It Mean?
The World Health Organization has today declared the Wuhan coronavirus (2019-nCoV) a public health emergency of international concern, or PHEIC.
This does not mean that we will all die or that the disease is out of control. Rather, it means that the virus is crossing international borders in such a way that countries work together to prevent the situation from getting worse.
So far, only 98 cases have been reported outside China. They are found in 18 countries, and they include eight cases of human-to-human transmission of the virus and (so far) no deaths. WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus praised China’s response and said at a press conference that the PHEIC declaration “is designed to protect, in particular, countries with weaker health systems.”
The meaning of the PHEIC declaration is to recognize an “extraordinary event” that has the potential to spread from one country to another and may require coordinated prevention and treatment efforts across national borders. 2019-nCoV didn’t quite meet the requirements last week. Now that the number of cases has increased and we have a better understanding of how they are spreading, the organization believes it is time to treat the outbreak as a global public health emergency.
What happens next?
The declaration enables WHO to advise countries on the best way to prevent the spread of the disease. Crucially, they said it was best practice not to impose any travel bans, border closures or quarantines for healthy travelers. (Several countries have begun or are discussing such measures.) There is no evidence that these bans help contain disease, and in fact they tend to harm more than help.
The international response, as recommended by WHO, will include accelerating vaccine research and developing more effective tests and treatments for the virus. Countries also need to consider logistics to effectively detect and respond to situations as they evolve in their region. And scientists and doctors working with a flash must share information so that others can use it.
Another key recommendation is to combat spreading misinformation. Politifact has an article that compiles some of the common hoaxes and conspiracy theories: No, this is not a man-made virus released by Bill Gates; no, FEMA has not declared martial law; no, there are tens of thousands of dead.
For now, the best advice for US residents is to do the same as every cold and flu season: wash your hands, avoid close contact with sick people, and stay home if you are sick yourself. The CDC has prevention tips , including a travel alert warning people about unnecessary travel to China. (This is not a ban, but friendly advice to play it safe. You can still go to China if you want.) If you have any reason to believe that you may have been infected with the virus, call your doctor.