MADISON - The leader of the state Assembly said Tuesday all lawmakers won't need to return to Madison to help fight the spread of coronavirus because the Legislature's budget committee can deal with the issue if needed.

"There’s no need for the Assembly to come in and have politicians grandstand on the issue. If additional resources are needed, we have a process where agencies can make a request to the Joint Committee on Finance," said a statement from Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, R-Rochester.

Assembly Minority Leader Gordon Hintz, D-Oshkosh, said it was premature for Vos to rule out having legislators take action. He said if the spread of the virus worsens, lawmakers may need to deal with a shortage of hospital beds or provide help for workers who are laid off if businesses temporarily shut down.

"Right now I don't think we should be ruling anything out," Hintz said. "Things could escalate quickly."

Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald, R-Juneau, said he is monitoring the situation but so far does not see the need for lawmakers to do anything.

"Currently, it appears that the federal government is looking at an additional package on top of the bipartisan funding bill that passed last week. At this point, I’m unaware of any additional requests (the state Department of Health Services) has made of the Legislature," Fitzgerald said in a statement.

On Tuesday, Wisconsin reported its third case of coronavirus and the Osceola School District became the first one in the state to close. The virus that emerged late last year has killed 27 in the United States and nearly 4,100 globally, according to Johns Hopkins University.

Senate Minority Leader Jennifer Shilling, D-La Crosse, said Republican leaders should be doing more to prepare the state for the emerging outbreak.

"We should expand Medicaid so that 82,000 more Wisconsinites have access to preventive health care coverage," she said in a statement. "We should strengthen family medical leave and expand paid sick leave options so workers who may be contagious don’t feel pressured to go to work sick."

Democratic Gov. Tony Evers so far has not called for additional funding for coronavirus and did not say Tuesday whether he wanted legislators to take any action.

Wisconsin recently received $1 million from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and is expected to receive about $10 million more under legislation signed last week by President Donald Trump.

Contact Patrick Marley at patrick.marley@jrn.com. Follow him on Twitter at @patrickdmarley.