(Video by Xinhua Reporters Hu Yousong and Tan Yixiao)
"The State of California is deploying every level of government to help identify cases and slow the spread of this coronavirus."
NEW YORK, March 5 (Xinhua) -- U.S. health authorities on Wednesday reported a total of 129 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and a death toll of 11 in the country.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Wednesday loosened the criteria for COVID-19 testing. Now anyone who has symptoms like a fever, cough or breathing difficulties are allowed to receive a test as long as a doctor agrees.
U.S. Vice President Mike Pence (front) speaks during a press conference on the coronavirus at the White House in Washington D.C., the United States, March 4, 2020. (Photo by Ting Shen/Xinhua)
The agency also stopped reporting the number of "persons under investigation" and negative test results for the COVID-19 on its website, saying on Twitter that "with more testing done by states, these numbers would not be representative of national testing."
California Governor Gavin Newsom declared a state of emergency hours after the Golden state reported its first death related to the COVID-19 on Wednesday.
"The State of California is deploying every level of government to help identify cases and slow the spread of this coronavirus," Newsom said in a statement.
The emergency proclamation includes provisions to protect consumers against price gouging, allow health care workers coming from outside the state to assist at health care facilities, and give health care facilities the flexibility to plan and adapt to accommodate incoming patients.
The first death in the state, an elderly person with underlying health conditions who lived in Placer County, may have been infected sometime between Feb. 11 and Feb. 21 during international travel on a cruise ship that departed from San Francisco to Mexico, according to health officials.
Placer County Public Health said that they are working closely with Sacramento County Public Health and the CDC to identify and contact other cruise passengers.
Anthony Fauci (front), director of the U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), speaks during a press conference on the coronavirus at the White House in Washington D.C., the United States, March 4, 2020. (Photo by Ting Shen/Xinhua)
Also on Wednesday, Los Angeles County declared a local public health emergency regarding the COVID-19 as six new cases were confirmed county-wide in 48 hours.
The county's Supervisor Kathryn Barger said at a press conference joined by Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti that the move was taken "out of abundance of caution" instead of "a response rooted in panic," noting that Los Angeles has world-class healthcare providers.
Barbara Ferrer, director of Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, warned that more infection cases of the COVID-19 are expected in the days ahead, but denied there is any case of community transmission in the Los Angeles area so far.
Meanwhile, in the northeastern state of New York, nine more COVID-19 cases were confirmed on Wednesday, all related to the state's second case, a 50-year-old attorney who works in Manhattan and lives in Westchester County just outside of New York City.
The new cases include the attorney's family members, a neighbor, a friend and the friend's family members. The attorney is hospitalized in critical condition, said New York Governor Andrew Cuomo at a press conference Wednesday afternoon.
The main campus of New York-based Yeshiva University, where the patient's son was attending, was closed on Wednesday, following the closure of two schools his siblings were attending a day earlier.
Director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Robert Redfield (front) speaks during a press conference on the coronavirus at the White House in Washington D.C., the United States, March 4, 2020. (Photo by Ting Shen/Xinhua)
In response to the disease's fast spread, the CDC has encouraged U.S. schools to cancel or postpone foreign exchange programs. A number of U.S. universities, including Northwestern University, Columbia University and New York University, have announced that they would cancel all sponsored international programs, including spring break trips.
University of Wisconsin-Madison, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and Loyola University Chicago have called for their exchange students studying in epidemic-hit countries to return home.
Meanwhile, leading U.S. airlines have announced measures to waive flight change fees as the COVID-19 outbreak disrupts travel plans for many people.
United Airlines has decided to waive change fees for all the flights booked March 3-31 and allow passengers to re-book another flight of equal or lesser value within 12 months from the original ticket issue date.
American Airlines is waiving change fees for any tickets issued between March 1 and March 16 on the condition that passengers cancel at least 14 days prior to their flight.
As for Delta Air Lines, international passengers can make a one-time flight change without any change fee for tickets issued between March 1 and 31. ■
