WASHINGTON — Several planes carrying passengers from Wuhan, China, where a new type of coronavirus was first detected, are coming to the United States this week.
The planes will be flying into the Travis Air Force Base in Sacramento, CA, Marine Corps Air Station Miramar in San Diego, CA, Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio, TX, and Eppley Airfield in Omaha, NE.
U.S. military officials say two jets carrying about 350 Americans fleeing the virus zone landed Thursday at Travis Air Force base. Some of those passengers will fly on to San Diego.
The Associated Press reported that as of Wednesday, China said deaths from the new coronavirus rose by 73 to 563. The number of confirmed cases jumped by 3,694 to 28,018.
On Wednesday, health officials confirmed the first case in Wisconsin and the 12th in the U.S.
Earlier in the day, federal health officials held a briefing for reporters and explained that 206 tests in the U.S. have come back negative, but there are still 76 tests pending, according to the CDC.
Each of the planes coming to the U.S. this week will be met by team members of the CDC to assess the health of the passengers. Everyone will be screened, monitored and evaluated, even before takeoff and during the flight.
The passengers will be quarantined when they arrive for up to 14 days. The CDC said that there will be housing available for the individuals. Medical care will also be available to the passengers at the first onset of symptoms, if needed.
The quarantine is part of President Donald Trump's temporary bar on entry to the U.S. of foreign nationals believed to be a risk of transmitting the virus.
Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar said Americans returning from central China’s Hubei province will be required to undergo 14 days of quarantine. Others returning from elsewhere in China will be allowed to self-monitor their condition for a similar period.
On January 31, the U.S. declared a public health emergency because of the coronavirus, but officials say the risk of getting sick remains low for Americans who have not traveled to China.
The CDC said the coronaviruses are a large family of viruses that are common in many different species of animals, including camels, cattle, cats, and bats. At the beginning stages of the virus, many of the patients with 2019-nCoV in Wuhan, China had some link to a large seafood and live animal market, which suggested animal-to-person spread. Later, a growing number of patients reportedly did not have exposure to animal markets, indicating person-to-person spread.
Organizations like the CDC and the World Health Organization are closely monitoring the situation. The CDC said its goal of the U.S. public health response is to determine new cases and quickly prevent the coronavirus to further spread.