PHOENIX — On Friday, Dr. Cara Christ, Director of the Arizona Department of Health Services called on businesses to develop contingency plans as the coronavirus is expected to hit Arizona.
“While only one case has been reported in Arizona in an individual who has since recovered, we expect more cases will occur here in the future. In order to best protect Arizonans, we all must work together to be responsive to this evolving situation,” wrote Christ in her blog on the Arizona Department of Health Services (ADHS) website.
3. As additional community cases are identified, we will be working with community and business leaders to encourage social distancing – a strategy that has worked in slowing disease spread. This could include encouraging teleworking and reducing or canceling mass gatherings.
— Dr. Cara Christ (@drcarachrist) February 28, 2020
Christ encourages “Arizona businesses to remain informed on the spread of a respiratory disease; create attendance policies for individuals to stay home when sick.”
“ADHS and our local and federal public health partners are focused on containing the spread of this virus and reducing its impact,” wrote Christ. “Our approaches include increasing testing capacity in Arizona, continuing monitoring of individuals with suspected infection and evaluating their contacts, developing guidance and recommendations to reduce the spread of disease, evaluating social distancing approaches, and readying our preparedness plans.”
6. Find reputable sources for news about #COVID19 and don’t spread inaccurate information. You can visit https://t.co/nOLFFENx9O for the most up-to-date news about the virus in AZ. @CDC also provides current updates: https://t.co/4S00oJ1yHE
— Dr. Cara Christ (@drcarachrist) February 28, 2020
In a letter to Vice President Mike Pence, Rep. Greg Stanton complained on Friday that Maricopa County health officials advised him that the rapid diagnostic kits they received on February 11 from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) were defective.
“Top public health officials in Maricopa County, Arizona – which I represent – have informed me that coronavirus rapid diagnostic test kits sent to the Arizona State Public Health Laboratory on February 11 by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) are defective,” wrote Stanton in his attack on the Trump administration. “As a result, Arizona officials have not had the tools necessary to quickly confirm COVID-19 cases and must continue to send their patient samples across the country to Atlanta, Georgia in order to be tested by the CDC. Officials in my state have been forced to wait upwards of nearly two weeks to receive coronavirus test results.”
By the time Stanton sent his letter, federal health officials had already confirmed the Arizona State Public Health Laboratory would begin testing for the coronavirus. According to azfamily.com, Arizona Department of Health Services [ADHS] confirmed “that these faulty test were discovered to be defective before they were used on people. The CDC reportedly sent new tests when becoming aware of this. So, the test kits Arizona currently have are safe to use.”
3. As additional community cases are identified, we will be working with community and business leaders to encourage social distancing – a strategy that has worked in slowing disease spread. This could include encouraging teleworking and reducing or canceling mass gatherings.
— Dr. Cara Christ (@drcarachrist) February 28, 2020