Approximately 14,692 new cases of COVID-19 were reported in the United States on June 3, 2020. Between January 20 and June 3 there have been 1,798,330 confirmed cases of COVID-19 with 105,008 deaths in the U.S as reported by the World Health Organization.
How did the coronavirus outbreak start?
Pneumonia cases with an unknown cause were first reported in the Hubei province of China at the end of December 2019. Patients described symptoms including a fever and a difficulty breathing, and early reports suggested no evidence of human-to-human transmission. We now know that a novel coronavirus named SARS-CoV-2 is causing the disease COVID-19. The virus is spreading from person to person and has been characterized as a pandemic: there have been nearly 6.5 million cases worldwide as of June 3, 2020.
The importance of isolation and quarantine
In an effort to contain the spread of the virus, China tightened travel restrictions and enforced isolation measures in the hardest-hit areas. The World Health Organization endorsed this strategy, and countries around the world have now implemented similar quarantine measures. Staying at home can help to stop the virus spreading from person to person, and this applies to people who are showing mild symptoms or none at all. Asymptomatic carriers of the virus – those that are experiencing no symptoms – may be increasing the spread and transmitting the virus to people who are at a higher risk of getting very sick.