The White House announced the creation of a coronavirus task force to help combat the deadly and fast-spreading disease.
“The Task Force will lead the Administration’s efforts to monitor, contain, and mitigate the spread of the virus, while ensuring that the American people have the most accurate and up-to-date health and travel information,” White House press secretary Stephanie Grisham said in a statement issued late Wednesday.
She said members of the task force, headed by Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar, have been gathering daily since Monday. President Trump chaired Wednesday’s meeting, and tweeted photos of officials meeting at the White House.
“Just received a briefing on the Coronavirus in China from all of our GREAT agencies, who are also working closely with China,” Trump said in the posting. “We will continue to monitor the ongoing developments. We have the best experts anywhere in the world, and they are on top of it 24/7!”
Grisham’s statement said the task force includes “subject matter experts from the White House and several United States Government agencies, and it includes some of the Nation’s foremost experts on infectious diseases.”
Along with Azar, the group includes national security adviser Robert O’Brien, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention director Robert Redfield, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases director and acting Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security Ken Cuccinelli.
“The risk of infection for Americans remains low, and all agencies are working aggressively to monitor this continuously evolving situation and to keep the public informed,” Grisham said.
The coronavirus, which originated in the Chinese city of Wuhan last month, is rapidly spreading around the world.
Australia, France, Japan, Singapore and Thailand have all reported confirmed cases.