SATURDAy, MARCH 7 , 2020. THE WASHINGTON POST eZ m2 A
THE CORONAVIRUS OUTBREAK
views known as “contact tracing”
with all three patients. In g eneral,
such interviews are conducted
either over the phone, via video
link or in person, with the investi-
gators wearing protective gear.
officials try to map out where a
person traveled to before being
quarantined, who they came into
contact with and what that “quali-
ty o f interaction” w as, Gayles said,
taking into account factors like
whether they were physically
proximate and whether they
hugged or shared food.
Each person who had contact
with a coronavirus patient is then
assigned a risk level, and depend-
ing on that assessment, health
officials may then decide to do
another level of contact tracing.
montgomery County Executive
marc Elrich (D) urged residents to
stay calm: “There is no reason to
panic. Life as you know it should
continue pretty much as it was.”
Thirty-one Virginia residents
have been tested for coronavirus as
of friday, including 21 whose tests
came back negative and 10 that are
pending. Three of the pending cas-
es are in Northern Virginia. The
Virginia state lab has two test kits
on hand, which is enough to meet
the demand for now, lab spokes-
woman Dena Potter said. The state
has requested a third kit from the
CDC. Each test kit will test 50 to 60
individuals.
Nine D.C. residents have been
tested; eight tests came back neg-
ative and one is pending.
meanwhile, the American Isra-
el Public Affairs Committee an-
nounced friday that two people
from New York who attended the
massive policy conference in
Washington early this week had
tested positive for the virus. D.C.
city officials said the two attend-
ees later confirmed to carry coro-
navirus did not show symptoms
such as fever or cough while they
were in the District. Both cases
had no identifiable risk to people
exposed to them, D.C. officials
concluded based on information
provided by New York authori-
ties.
The maryland General Assem-
bly approved Hogan’s request for
$50 million from the state’s rainy
day fund to deal with the corona-
virus. The metro system launched
the second phase of its pandemic
response to the coronavirus
threat, canceling nonessential
business travel and providing
hand sanitizer to front-line em-
ployees such as metrobus opera-
tors, a metro spokesman said.
Attorney General Brian E.
frosh (D) warned maryland resi-
dents about scams involving the
virus, including websites to sell
“bogus health products”; fake
emails, texts and social media
posts to steal money and personal
information; and people posing
as the CDC and the WHo.
montgomery County resident
Judy Black, 67, stopped by a
Bethesda CVS on friday morning
to grab some hand sanitizer — to
no avail.
S he picked up the store’s last
few bottles of antibacterial soap
instead, then shared them with
others in the checkout line who
had come for the same thing.
“It’s a difficult situation,” said
Black, a special-education teach-
er. “It’s not panic, but it’s very
difficult to be conscious and cau-
tious and not create panic.”
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]Justin george, Dana Hedgpeth, Fenit
nirappil, steve thompson and ovetta
Wiggins contributed to this report.1 million people just outside the
District, were doing most of the
legwork. So far, no one identified
as potentially exposed has dis-
played symptoms that warrant
testing, Chan said.
No one from the retirement
community has been identified
for testing. Hogan said residents
and staff should take their tem-
peratures regularly and observe
other precautions to quickly iden-
tify any possible infections.
“This is exactly what our state
has been actively preparing for
many weeks,” Hogan said. “I want
to again assure marylanders that
all levels of government are work-
ing together in response to this
threat to public health.”
The individual who tested posi-
tive for covid-19 and attended the
shiva was a friend of a family
member, said the grandson, who
asked not to be named to protect
his family’s p rivacy. A fter learning
about the possible exposure, the
grandson called a phone number
provided by the state and was told
he did not need to be tested if he
was not showing any symptoms.
As of friday evening, 44 people
in maryland have been tested for
the virus. results are pending for
eight patients, none of whom are
connected to the three confirmed
infections. H ogan said more re-
sults could come this weekend.
“This is changing so quickly,”
Chan said. “The guidance we pro-
vide right now might change, and
that’s based on what’s changing
on the ground.”
Sen. Ben Cardin (D-md.), who
toured the National Institutes of
Health vaccine research center in
Bethesda on friday afternoon
with Sen. Chris Van Hollen
(D-md.), said test kits are being
transported to private labs across
the country, which should signifi-
cantly expand the ability to test
potential patients.
“It will be reimbursable under
medicare, it will be reimbursable
under medicaid,” Cardin said.
“We want to make this an essen-
tial health benefit.”
maryland has received
$500 million from the CDC to
help stem the outbreak, Van Hol-
len said.
maryland officials said the
state contacted the three mont-
gomery County residents earlier
this week, after learning from the
CDC that they were on a trip that
included exposure to the corona-
virus. All are quarantined at
home and in good condition.
Hogan said the state is “having
trouble getting information from
the CDC” about details of the
patients’ itinerary, including
which countries were visited.
Adam Kurland, 36, said he was
“shocked” to learn on social me-
dia friday night of possible expo-
sure at The Village, where his
96-year-old grandmother is a res-
ident. He and his family spent
most of the evening trying to get
in touch with staff at the facility,
without success.
“I’m trying to remain calm, but
I’m kind of angry that they ha-
ven’t given us more information
yet,” Kurland said. “We’re essen-
tially totally in the dark right
now.”
Gayles said there is no reason
at t his point to consider any wide-
spread closures of schools, offices
or other institutions in the coun-
ty. rather, he said, people who feel
sick should stay home, and every-
one should take basic precautions
like washing their hands, using
hand sanitizer and avoiding con-
tact with those who are ill.
Gayles said state investigators
have conducted in-depth inter-people in the Houston area also
reportedly developed covid-19,
caused by the virus, after return-
ing to the United States following
a Nile cruise. Hogan (r) said the
Te xas and maryland cases ap-
peared related.
five family members of the
confirmed maryland patients
have been identified for testing
but have not yet been tested,
officials said. A broad search for
other people who were in contact
with the patients and should be
tested is underway.
“We are providing these up-
dates not to unnecessarily raise
alarm but in the interest of full
transparency and out of an abun-
dance of caution,” Hogan said at a
news conference. “We are com-
mitted to do everything in our
power to contain this virus and to
limit its spread in our state.”
Although the three residents,
all from montgomery County, h ad
flu-like symptoms after their trip,
they were not tested for the virus
for nearly two weeks, because at
the time of their return, the Cen-
ters for Disease Control and Pre-
vention recommended tests only
for people who had been traveling
in China, montgomery County
Health officer Travis Gayles said.
The residents’ names are being
withheld by state officials for pri-
vacy reasons.
In the days before they were
tested, one of the three attended a
private gathering at a residence in
Bucks County, according to a
statement on the school district’s
website. multiple children and
school system staff were there.
The school district closed five
schools “for at least one day” as a
result, the statement said, and the
Bucks County Department of
Health was working to contact
everyone who attended the gath-
ering and to check them for symp-
toms of illness. A “small number
of people” w ho were at t he gather-
ing and experienced flu-like
symptoms have tested negative
for covid-19, the school district
said. The 14-day incubation peri-
od ends monday.
Another of the montgomery
County residents who tested posi-
tive went to The Village at rock-
ville on feb. 28 to pay a condo-
lence call to the family of a former
resident of the retirement com-
munity.
The man’s grandson said be-
tween 70 and 100 people attended
the event, which in Jewish tradi-
tion is known as sitting shiva.
most w ere family and friends who
do not live at the complex, which
marketing director Allison
Combs said houses about 300
people split among independent
living, assisted living and skilled
nursing homes.
Hogan called the interactions
“concerning” and said anyone
who was at the shiva should con-
tact health officials and watch for
symptoms.
Under powers granted by a
state of emergency Hogan de-
clared Thursday, the state or-
dered health insurers to waive all
costs for patient testing, which so
far has been done by the state lab.
maryland has 1,000 testing kits
and expects another shipment
next week, when several private
lab companies will be cleared to
test.
The search for potential cases
involves “a lot of phone calls and
left messages and ‘please call me
back,’ ” said Assistant maryland
Health Secretary Jinlene Chan.
She said health workers in mont-
gomery County, a suburb of about
mArylAnd from A
Md. patients may have exposed
elderly, children to infection
mIcHAel s. WIllIAmson/tHe WAsHIngton Postmontgomery County Health Officer Travis Gayles speaks Friday at a news conference i n rockville
about three county residents who have tested positive for coronavirus after visiting Egypt.