World Health Organization declares coronavirus an “international health emergency”

The World Health Organization (WHO) has officially classified the coronavirus (2019-nCoV) an international health emergency today.

In their statement on the virus, WHO reminded countries that they are “legally required” to report any cases to them directly.

“It is expected that further international exportation of cases may appear in any country,” WHO’s statement reads. “Thus, all countries should be prepared for containment, including active surveillance, early detection, isolation and case management, contact tracing and prevention of onward spread of 2019-nCoV infection, and to share full data with WHO.“

Technical advice is available on the WHO website.

Yesterday, on Jan. 29 officials reported that the death toll from the coronavirus, which broke out in China earlier this month, has killed 170 people.

Chinese authorities also reported over 7,700 confirmed cases of the virus, which has now spread to every region of mainland China.

At least 19 other countries and territories outside of China have reported confirmed cases of the coronavirus as well.

Strict biosecurity measures are being taken in certain parts of the world and the World Health Organization (WHO) is set to debate on whether the virus is an international public health emergency.

The United States, Australia, Japan, and India have all evacuated their citizens from Wuhan, Hubei Provence, China where the novel coronavirus was first identified.