March 3 coronavirus news

There are 100 cases of the novel coronavirus in the United States, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, as well as state and local governments. 

According to the CDC, there are 48 cases from repatriated citizens. According to CNN Health’s tally of US cases that are detected and tested in the United States through US public health systems, there are 52 cases in 11 states. Bringing the total of coronavirus cases to 100.

This includes presumptive positive cases that tested positive in a public health lab and are pending confirmation from the CDC, and confirmed cases have received positive results from the CDC. 

Here's a breakdown of the 52 US cases:

Ontario is reporting three new cases of novel coronavirus, according to Dr. David Williams, Ontario's Chief Medical Officer of Health.

Dr. Williams says this brings Ontario’s total to 18 confirmed cases.

The new cases include one woman in her late 60s, with a travel history to Egypt; one woman in her 70s, with a travel history to Egypt; and one male in his 60s with a travel history to Iran, Dr. Williams said.

“We are learning more and more about how this virus transmits, so that's important,” Dr. Williams said during today’s news conference.

Here's where the coronavirus has been confirmed in Canada:

Today, Christine Elliott, Deputy Premier and Minister of Health, also announced that Ontario is implementing an enhanced response structure that “formally brings together a wide range of partners to review, strengthen and implement provincial and regional plans and ensure their responsiveness to the specifics of COVID-19.”

There are at least 48 schools closed for cleaning in Washington state over fears of the spread of novel coronavirus.  

Here a list of the school closings in the state:

 Closed today:  

 Closed today and tomorrow: 

  Closed tomorrow: 

Hear more:

Six people have now died in Washington state from the novel coronavirus, according to health officials. 

A person has died from coronavirus in Snohomish County, according to Heather Thomas, spokesperson with the Snohomish Health District. No additional details were immediately available from the health district. 

Five other people have died in King County, according to Jeffrey Duchin, a public health official with the county.

Learn more:

Amazon says it has pulled more than 1 million products for price gouging or falsely advertising effectiveness against the coronavirus. 

This action comes after Wired found sellers gouging the prices of coronavirus-related products, like face masks, or charging people "exorbitant shipping costs," according to the magazine.

The company said in a statement that it has "always required sellers provide accurate information" on product pages and removes those that violates its policies. Amazon said that third-party sellers must follow its Fair Pricing Policy, which states companies can't set a price "significantly higher" then seen in other places or sell an item that "misleads customers." 

There have been five deaths the novel coronavirus in Seattle and King County, according to Jeffrey Duchin, a public health official with the county.

There are a lot of steps that go into containing and mitigating the novel coronavirus, also known as Covid-19.

The strategy may include controlling the disease by testing for the virus as early as possible, tracing the contacts of an infected person and by preventing infections in health care facilities. It may also include non-pharmaceutical interventions for individuals and communities, like encouraging good hygiene and canceling events where a lot of people will gather.

Later on, treatments and vaccines may help mitigate the outbreak — but those take time to develop and test.

Resolve to Save Lives, a health initiative to prevent epidemics, spelled out the process in this chart:

Iran has received the first planeload of assistance from the World Health Organization, including eight tons of medicines and test kits, to help the country in its battle against the new coronavirus outbreak, state news IRNA reported.

A United Arab Emirates military aircraft carrying the aid landed at Tehran's Imam Khomeini International Airport, IRNA said.

Representatives of the UN's health agency have also arrived in Iran to examine the country's handling of the virus. 

Director-General of the World Health Organization, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus tweeted this:

It's recommended that you take precautionary measures when it comes to foods and utensils that are communal. The novel coronavirus is a respiratory virus, meaning it transmits through the lungs. It's recommended that you are cautious when it comes to shared utensils and foods like salad bars.