On December 31, 2019, the World Health Organization (WHO) was informed of a cluster of pneumonia cases in Wuhan, China. Illnesses have since been linked to a new strain of coronavirus, designated 2019 Novel Coronavirus, or 2019-nCoV.1 As of January 30, 2020, WHO reports that more than 7,800 people have been infected, and 170 have died. Most cases and deaths are in China. The disease has spread to several other countries, including the United States. As the scope of the epidemic widened in China, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) stated on January 30, 2020, that its "assessment remains that the immediate risk to the American public is low."2 The situation is rapidly changing, however, and both WHO and CDC post frequent updates.3 For more information about the U.S. response to this new threat, see CRS Insight IN11212, Another Coronavirus Emerges: U.S. Domestic Response to 2019-nCoV, and CRS In Focus IF11421, Novel Coronavirus (2019-nCoV): Developments in China and International Response.
The following table lists names and contact information for CRS experts on policy concerns involving the outbreak of 2019 Novel Coronavirus (2019-nCoV). Policy areas identified include
|
Legislative Issues |
Name/Title |
Phone |
|
|
Public health, virology, epidemiology |
|||
|
Sarah A. Lister |
[phone number scrubbed] |
[email address scrubbed] |
|
|
Kavya Sekar |
[phone number scrubbed] |
[email address scrubbed] |
|
|
International response activities |
|||
|
General, outbreak response |
Sara M. Tharakan |
[phone number scrubbed] |
[email address scrubbed] |
|
General, World Health Organization (WHO), international authorities |
Tiaji Salaam-Blyther |
[phone number scrubbed] |
[email address scrubbed] |
|
China: general |
Susan V. Lawrence |
[phone number scrubbed] |
[email address scrubbed] |
|
China: economics and trade |
Karen M. Sutter |
[phone number scrubbed] |
[email address scrubbed] |
|
Domestic response activities |
|||
|
Public health, Health and Human Services (HHS), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), funding |
Sarah A. Lister |
[phone number scrubbed] |
[email address scrubbed] |
|
Kavya Sekar |
[phone number scrubbed] |
[email address scrubbed] |
|
|
Medical countermeasures (tests, vaccines, treatments) |
Agata Dabrowska |
[phone number scrubbed] |
[email address scrubbed] |
|
Frank Gottron |
[phone number scrubbed] |
[email address scrubbed] |
|
|
Kavya Sekar |
[phone number scrubbed] |
[email address scrubbed] |
|
|
Edward C. Liu |
[phone number scrubbed] |
[email address scrubbed] |
|
|
Biodefense |
Frank Gottron |
[phone number scrubbed] |
[email address scrubbed] |
|
Border Screening, Customs and Border Protection (CBP) |
Audrey Singer |
[phone number scrubbed] |
[email address scrubbed] |
|
Transportation Sector/Aviation |
Bart Elias |
[phone number scrubbed] |
[email address scrubbed] |
|
Rachel Y. Tang |
[phone number scrubbed] |
[email address scrubbed] |
|
|
Isolation and quarantine, medical countermeasures |
Edward C. Liu |
[phone number scrubbed] |
[email address scrubbed] |
Author Contact Information
| 1. |
World Health Organization (WHO), "Novel Coronavirus (2019-nCoV)," https://www.who.int/westernpacific/emergencies/novel-coronavirus. |
| 2. |
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), telebriefing transcript, January 30, 2020, https://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2020/t0130-novel-coronavirus-update-telebriefing.html. |
| 3. |
WHO, "Novel Coronavirus (2019-nCoV) situation reports," https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019/situation-reports; and CDC, "2019 Novel Coronavirus (2019-nCoV) Situation Summary," https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/summary.html. |