Media Coverage

Dr. Amy Compton-Phillips recalled the day the first U.S. patient infected with COVID-19, a 35-year-old man from Snohomish County in Washington state, had taken a “turn for the worse.”[CR-LF][CR-LF]“He was day nine in his course and he actually started going downhill, started getting worse,” said Compton-Phillips, chief clinical officer of Providence St. Joseph Health, where the patient was treated.[CR-LF][CR-LF]At first, the patient only had common cold-like symptoms, Compton-Phillips said. But very quickly he began to have shortness of breath and a cough, she said. His X-ray also showed viral pneumonia. He needed supplemental oxygen and had to be put on an experimental antiviral treatment.

Connecticut lawmakers will begin the daunting task Friday of crafting a strategy to mobilize the public and private sectors to combat the coronavirus – an effort that comes as state health officials acknowledged hundreds of residents are being monitored for the illness.[CR-LF][CR-LF]The state Department of Public Health is aware of 200 people currently being monitored for the virus, said Max Reiss, spokesman for Gov. Ned Lamont. The governor was briefed Thursday by Renee Coleman-Mitchell, commissioner of the state Department of Public Health, and Dr. Matthew Carter, the state epidemiologist.

A major health insurance trade group is pledging its member plans will cover doctor-ordered testing for the coronavirus amid rising confusion and concern about who will bear the cost of care in an outbreak.

U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez on Thursday joined with 14 Senate colleagues to urge U.S. employers to commit not to penalize workers for following recommended health procedures in order to protect the public from further spread of the coronavirus.[CR-LF][CR-LF]In a letter to major industry groups, which together represent thousands of companies employing millions of Americans, the senators wrote: “As the United States mobilizes to respond to the recent outbreak and spread of COVID-19, the novel coronavirus, we write to urge your member companies to prioritize their employees’ health, economic well-being, and security during this response. The companies you represent are some of the largest, most high profile companies in the United States. The broader business community watches their actions closely and we believe they have an opportunity, and an obligation, to lead in this moment.”

U.S. lab operator Quest Diagnostics Inc said on Thursday it was launching a test service for coronavirus and can start testing from next week.[CR-LF][CR-LF]On Wednesday, the Trump administration met with private lab test developers to discuss increasing the availability of diagnostics.[CR-LF][CR-LF]The company said test services will be provided as a laboratory developed test, pending review by the FDA under emergency-use authorization.