The potential case of the coronavirus in Porter County in northwest Indiana reportedly came back negative Friday.
Indiana healthcare providers are taking the new virus seriously, and discussed prevention and preparation on a Jan. 31 Noon Edition show.
Graham McKeen is the Assistant University Director of Public and Environmental Health at Indiana University. He says one of the most important discoveries about the virus is how it spreads.
“The head infectious disease doctor at NIH confirming based on that New England Journal of Medicine article that came out last night that this can be infectious prior to symptom onset,” McKeen says.
Dr. Tom Hrisomalos is an IU Health Southern Indiana Physicians provider who specializes in infectious disease.
He says symptoms of the virus are similar to the flu and it’s important to have tests available as people come into his office for treatment.
“And if we don’t have any way to definitively tell what you have, then we’re sort of in limbo,” Hrisomalos says.
He says the Center For Disease Control will administer tests to state health departments soon, making them more accessible.
Watch a segment with Indiana Newsdesk's Joe Hren and Mitch Legan on the coronavirus:
