NYC Resident Tested For Coronavirus After Italy Trip: Officials

NEW YORK CITY — A New York City resident is being tested for novel coronavirus after the person returned from a trip to Italy with symptoms, Health Department officials said Thursday.

Health Commissioner Dr. Oxiris Barbot told New Yorkers Thursday night to expect increased testing after the federal government expanded its coronavirus test criteria to include travel to Iran, Italy, Japan and South Korea.

"We expect the number of cases under investigation to grow," Barbot said. "Viruses don’t respect borders and this broader definition will help us cast a wider net."

It will likely be two days before the Centers for Disease Prevention and Control process the results in Atlanta, noted a rankled City Council member Mark Levine, one of several New York City officials pushing for CDC approval to conduct testing in the city.

Health officials suggest New Yorkers wash their hands, cover their mouths when coughing or sneezing, and stay home if feeling unwell.

Find more novel coronavirus information from the New York City Health Department here.

Italy has documented 650 and 17 related deaths while South Korea has more than 2,000 cases, and Iran has 245 cases., according to European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control.

There have been 83,400 cases of the coronavirus have been confirmed across the globe, along with more than 2,858 deaths, according to the ECDP.

The U.S. has 60 cases, including one person in California who did not travel anywhere known to have the virus.