Kathmandu, February 1

The United States declared the novel coronavirus a public health emergency in the country. Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar informed about the declaration in a White House briefing on Friday.

As per the CNN, Azar said that once the declaration goes into effect from Sunday, US citizens returning to the United States who have been in China's Hubei province in the two weeks before their return will be subject to up to 14 days of mandatory quarantine.

The announcement came as the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention confirmed seventh coronavirus case in the US. The seventh patient is an adult male in Santa Clara County in northern California.

Azar added that US citizens returning from the rest of mainland China in the two weeks prior will face a health screening at a select number of ports of entry and also face up to two weeks of monitored self-quarantine to ensure they pose no health risk.

CNN reported that President Donald Trump has signed a proclamation suspending the entry of foreign nationals who have traveled in China in the last two weeks. However, foreign nationals who are the immediate family of US citizens or permanent residents are exempt.

The outbreak has so far killed at least 259 people and infected more than 10,000 others in China, most of them in the Hubei province.

Earlier, the CDC ordered a federal 14-day quarantine for the 195 Americans on an Air Force base in California recently evacuated from Wuhan, China, the epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak.

Hamro Doctor