The first suspected case of the new coronavirus remains under investigation.

Department of Health spokesperson Danyelle McNeill today confirmed that the patient became sick after returning from a trip to China. The patient is now in isolation at a hospital, where testing was administered for the novel form of coronavirus first identified in Wuhan, Hubei Province, China. Respiratory and serum samples from the patient were sent to the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention lab in Atlanta for testing, McNeill said. Results are expected back tomorrow.

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No other details about the patient have been released by state officials.

State health officials have been working on the case in consultation with the CDC, which determined that the state should proceed with testing.

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The CDC has been closely monitoring an outbreak of respiratory illness caused the new coronavirus identified in Wuhan. Five cases of the new coronavirus have been confirmed in the United States (two in California, one in Arizona, one in Illinois, and one in Washington). According to the CDC, another 92 cases are currently under investigation; 68 people tested have come back negative.

There have been thousands of confirmed cases in China, including cases outside Wuhan City.

 

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