PHOENIX — Arizona health officials have confirmed a presumptive positive case of coronavirus, bringing the total case count in Arizona to two. The second case in Maricopa County involves a man in his 20s.
The man has not been hospitalized and is recovering at home. According to officials, “the man is a known contact of a presumed positive case outside of Arizona who had traveled to an area with community spread of COVID-19.”
The Arizona Department of Health Services (ADHS) State Public Health Lab began testing for COVID-19 on March 2. The lab was able to detect this second positive case on its first day of testing, the same day that Maricopa County Department of Public Health (MCDPH) requested that this individual be tested.
COVID-19 is believed to spread mostly through respiratory droplets produced when a sick person coughs or sneezes. Signs and symptoms of COVID-19 include fever, cough, and shortness of breath. The best way to prevent COVID-19 and other respiratory diseases is to:
- Avoid close contact with people who are sick.
- Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth.
- Stay home when you are sick.
- Cover your cough or sneeze with a tissue, then throw the tissue in the trash.
- Clean and disinfect frequently-touched objects and surfaces using a regular household cleaning spray or wipe.
- Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds. If soap and water is not readily available, use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer.
According to MCDPH, after receiving the presumptive positive, staff interviewed close contacts of the case and recommended that they monitor for symptoms and quarantine themselves for 14 days based on the risk of exposure.
“As far as risk to the public, we are still doing the case investigation of this individual, however, because we know when and where this individual was exposed, this does not represent community spread,” Dr. Rebecca Sunenshine, medical director for disease control for MCDPH.
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