Statement on the meeting of the IHR Emergency Committee regarding the outbreak of novel coronavirus
The Emergency Committee was convened today by the WHO Director-General under the International Health Regulations regarding the outbreak of novel coronavirus 2019. The committee advised that the event did not constitute a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC), they agreed on the urgency of the situation and suggested that the Committee should be reconvened in a matter of days to examine the situation further.
More than 500 people have been infected, and at least 17 people have died, from a new virus from the same family as SARS and the common cold.
The new coronavirus (known as 2019-nCoV) was first reported in Wuhan City, China, on 31 December 2019, and has since been detected in travellers to other countries. WHO is working with the Chinese authorities and global experts to learn more about the virus and how to prevent its spread.
