Death of Dr. Li Wenliang, whistleblower who warned of new virus, triggers outpouring of rage at government.

As of this writing, there are 337 People Under Investigation (PUI) for possible Wuhan coronavirus in the United States, distributed in 36 states. Of those, 12 have tested positive (located in six states), 225 have tested negative, and 100 cases have pending diagnosis status.

White House Asks Science Experts To ‘Rapidly’ Investigate Origin or Virus

The presidents of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM) have agreed to investigate the true origins of the Wuhan coronavirus.

Marcia McNutt, president of the National Academy of Sciences (NAS), has received a letter from Kelvin Droegemeier, director of the White House’s Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP). The letter requests American scientific experts to “rapidly” look into the origins of the virus in order to address both the current spread, and “to inform future outbreak preparation and better understand animal/human and environmental transmission aspects of coronaviruses.” Droegemeier also called for a “meeting of experts, particularly world class geneticists, coronavirus experts, and evolutionary biologists.” In response to Droegemeier’s letter, the presidents of the three scientific academies comprising NASEM submitted a synopsis of their research into the Wuhan coronavirus, as 2019-nCoV is also known. They called Droegemeier’s request “timely given the declaration of a public health emergency and potential for misinformation to confound the response.”

First American dies of coronavirus while hospitalized in China

The first American patient has succumbed to the Wuhan coronavirus, after becoming infected and being hospitalized in Wuhan (the epicenter of the outbreak). A 60-year-old diagnosed with coronavirus in Wuhan, China, has reportedly become the first U.S. citizen to die of the novel virus. The patient died at Jinyintian Hospital in Wuhan on Thursday, The New York Times reported. The U.S. Embassy in Beijing confirmed the patient’s death Friday night but gave few other details. “We offer our sincerest condolences to the family on their loss,” a spokesman for the embassy said, according to the Times. “Out of respect for the family’s privacy, we have no further comment.”

Coronavirus deaths exceed 2003 SARS epidemic fatalities

The number of coronavirus deaths has overtaken that of the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) epidemic in 2003.

Deaths from the novel coronavirus have now surpassed that of SARS in the early 2000s, with more than 800 dead so far, according to multiple reports. Hubei province in China reported 81 deaths Saturday, which pushed the death toll for the virus to 811 — past that of the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS), which broke out on the mainland in 2002 and 2003. The SARS outbreak killed at least 774, with 8,096 infections globally, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

The death of Dr. Li Wenliang, the hero whistleblower who warned of new virus, triggers outpouring of rage at government.

The death of the hero whistleblower has sparked both sorrow at his death and anger at the government’s throttling of information about the virus.

In death, Dr. Li Wenliang became the face of simmering anger at the ruling Communist Party’s control over information, and complaints that officials lie about or hide disease outbreaks, chemical spills, dangerous consumer products and financial fraud The 34-year-old ophthalmologist died overnight at Wuhan Central Hospital, where he worked and likely contracted the virus while treating patients in the early days of the outbreak. ”A hero who released information about Wuhan’s epidemic in the early stages, Dr. Li Wenliang is immortal,” the China Center for Disease Control’s chief scientist, Zeng Guang, wrote on the Sina Weibo microblog service.

New JAMA report on 138 Coronavirus Cases Reveals Rapid Transmission, Unexpected Declines

After studying 138 patients in Wuhan, the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), has published one of the most comprehensive articles to date about people infected with the newly identified virus.

…Reporting on Friday in JAMA, the authors said their data suggested that rapid person-to-person spread of the virus had occurred among their cases. That was in part because of patients like the one admitted to the surgical department, whose symptoms misled doctors into suspecting other illnesses and failing to take precautions to prevent spread of the virus until it was too late. About 10 percent of the patients did not initially have the usual symptoms, cough and fever, but instead had diarrhea and nausea first. Other uncommon symptoms included headache, dizziness and abdominal pain. Another cause for concern was that some patients who at first appeared mildly or moderately ill then took a turn for the worse several days or even a week into their illness.

Chinese New Year festival in Miami canceled over coronavirus fears

A Chinese New Year Festival in Miami was cancelled over coronavirus concerns.

“Due to the worldwide concerns regarding 2019 Novel Coronavirus (2019-nCoV) and our concern for the welfare and benefit of all our visitors, vendors, exhibitors, and sponsors, the 2020 Festival Committee has cancelled the 2020 Chinese New Year Festival,” organizers posted on Facebook. The organization took a softer tone on its website. “In order to stand with our global family throughout Asia—especially China, we regret to announce that the 2020 Chinese New Year Festival has been cancelled,” organizers wrote. “We will be back in 2021 to celebrate the Year of the Ox.”



