On February 17, China recorded less than 2,000 cases of COVID-19 in a single day, a first since the outbreak was recorded in January 2020 taking the number of positively confirmed cases to over 73,300.
The number of cases appears to be plateauing in China as well as the other countries 2019-nCoV has spread to after it rapidly rose in January 2020.
Here are the latest updates with regards to the virus:
Global Developments
Vital Stats
The virus has so far claimed 1873 lives, 1868 from mainland China, and one each from France, Hong Kong, Japan, Philippines, and Taiwan.
The total number of confirmed cases for the Coronavirus have risen to more than 73,300 spread across 28 countries.
Over 13,056 people have recovered, according to a real time data monitor by John Hopkins University. The recovered cases have been kept under observation and are treated with a variety of medicines by various doctors.
International Organizations
The World Health Organization is refraining from announcing the COVID-19 as a pandemic. Dr. Sylvie Briand, director of WHO's Infectious Hazards Management Department, categorically stated "The difficulty with certain words is that their interpretation varies, and for [the] general public, very often 'pandemic' is really the worst-case scenario. And so I think we need, before qualifying the event as the worst-case scenario, we need a lot more evidence and a lot more data. And so that's why I think we need to be cautious, because it can really create panic unnecessarily."
The WHO has also stated that they will report both laboratory and clinically diagnosed cases as confirmed cases for COVID-19. Earlier, they were only reporting laboratory confirmed cases.
The UNICEF which has flown out 13 tons of supplies to China and other East Asian nations, has announced that it needs over $42 million to accelerate its response to the Coronavirus.
Developments in China
The director of Wuhan Wuchang Hospital, Liu Zhiming, passed away due to COVID-19.
Around 780 million Chinese residents are under some form of travel restrictions as the country tries to tackle the Coronavirus outbreak.
China will designate all the health workers who died due to the virus as 'martys'.
Other developments
The toll of confirmed cases on board The Diamond Princess, a cruise liner is now 542 with 88 new confirmed cases.
Fourteen people evacuated by US from the Diamond Princess have tested positive for the virus.
The rising fear of Coronavirus has led to the depletion of resources. In Japan, thieves stole 6,000 surgical masks from a hospital.
Economists at the research firm Capital Economics have stated that Japan's economy may shrink by 0.5% due to COVID-19 in 2020.
Coronavirus in India
All the three confirmed cases in India have recovered.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman convened a press conference to discuss the impact of the Coronavirus on India stating that the pharma, solar and chemical industries have reached out to the ministry discussing the disruptions the virus is doing on their trade.
Read our previous monitor here.
Misinformation around Coronavirus
The misinformation surrounding Coronavirus is increasing daily.
Also Read: Can Coronavirus Be Cured By Drinking Boiled Ginger?
BOOM has been actively debunking misinformation surrounding the virus.
