Fears of the coronavirus led officials in Georgia to request that nearly 200 people isolate themselves after recent trips to China.
Georgia officials tracked down 200 residents who recently returned from China, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. None of the residents had visited the city of Wuhan, which is the epicenter of the outbreak, or showed signs of illness as of Tuesday, but the state requested that they isolate themselves in their homes for 14 days while reporting health updates to authorities.
The decision mirrors protocol requested by the Trump administration, which asked states to inspect passengers as they return from China and then place them in isolation for up to 14 days to ensure they have not carried the SARs-like illness home. There have not been any confirmed cases of the coronavirus in Georgia, but a family of four from Atlanta is combating the illness in Japan after being infected on a cruise ship.
All commercial flights between Georgia and China have been canceled over concerns about the virus, but some residents have been able to travel between the two countries by flying through countries such as Germany or England. The Georgia Department of Public Health has been working with U.S. Customs and Border Protection to retrace itineraries of international travelers to ensure they had not visited infected areas.
More than 1,000 people have died of the coronavirus in China since the outbreak began in December, according to reports from the Chinese government. Many believe the Communist Party has underreported the spread of the illness, however. In the United States, 13 individuals are being treated for confirmed cases of the virus.
