Four more countries are confirming their first coronavirus cases while Italy is shutting down all schools for 10 days.
Chile, Hungary, Poland and Slovenia reported their first cases Wednesday. The Hungarian cases involved two Iranian students, while the one in Slovenia involved a patient who had traveled through Morocco and Italy.
Italy has Europe's largest number of coronavirus cases — 2,700, with 100 deaths. Its government made what it called the "prudent" decision to close all schools through March 15.
World Health Organization chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said at his daily virus briefing Wednesday that 75 countries had reported cases. He urged all nations to act on what he called "The 3 C's" — first case, first cluster of cases and first sign of community transmission.
"Our message to all countries is this is not a one-way street. We can push this virus back," he said. But he said he was concerned that in some countries he did not name, "the level of political will does not match the level of the threat we face."
Tedros, referring to the published report on the outbreak by the WHO-China Joint Mission, said it urged all countries to "educate their populations, to expand surveillance, to find, isolate and care for every case, to trace every contact, and to take an all-of-government and all-of-society approach. This is not a job for the health ministry alone."
The United States reported its 11th coronavirus death, that of an elderly man near Sacramento, California. His death was announced just hours after a 10th person died from coronavirus in Washington state, where all of the other U.S. fatalities have taken place so far.
Many of victims were also elderly and lived in a nursing home. Health experts said senior citizens are especially vulnerable to the virus.
The California death prompted Governor Gavin Newsom to declare a state of emergency because of the potential for the spread of the virus. Washington and Florida have declared emergencies as well.
At least 129 U.S. cases have been reported, and the House of Representatives on Wednesday passed an $8.3 billion emergency spending bill to tackle the virus, including for vaccine research and purchases of test kits and treatments. Some of the money would also be used in international efforts to stop the virus.
The Senate was expected to pass the measure, and U.S. President Donald Trump was expected to sign it. Many in Congress said they thought the administration’s initial request for $2.5 billion wasn't enough, prompting Trump to say that he would accept much more.
Trump said earlier Wednesday that the coronavirus outbreak had "probably" had a "positive impact" because he said Americans were staying home to shop and travel rather than spending money abroad.
As of late Wednesday, the WHO reported nearly 93,000 coronavirus cases worldwide and 3,160 deaths.
