Low number of novel coronavirus cases ‘reassuring,’ Ontario health official says

Published January 30, 2020 at 5:57 pm

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TORONTO — Ontario’s chief medical officer of health says the relatively low number of novel coronavirus cases in Ontario is “reassuring.”

There are three confirmed cases of the virus in Canada — two in Ontario and one in British Columbia — all linked to recent travel in China.

Dr. David Williams and associate medical officer of health Dr. Barbara Yaffe say there are no new presumptive or confirmed cases in Ontario.

They say there are 27 cases currently under investigation in the province, and 38 people have already been tested and cleared.

Williams says it is still early days in dealing with this virus, but he would be much more concerned if Ontario had already seen around 7 to 10 cases.

He says people living in Ontario should be reassured that the system is working, and that those with symptoms and a travel history to the affected area are self-reporting.

More than 7,700 people in China have been diagnosed with the new coronavirus and 170 of them have died.

—With files from AP

The Canadian Press

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