The Wuhan coronavirus has spread person-to-person in the US for the 1st time - to the husband of a woman who went to China

Reuters/Carlos Garcia Rawlins

A staff member checks the temperature of a passenger entering a subway station in Beijing, China on January 28, 2020.

• A sixth person in the US has been diagnosed with the novel coronavirus that originated in Wuhan, China.
• This is the first known case of person-to-person spread of the virus in the US.
• The infected person is a man in his 60s, the husband of a woman who'd recently traveled to China.
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The US now has its first reported case of human-to-human transmission of the novel coronavirus that originated in Wuhan, China.

The patient is a man in his 60s whose wife recently traveled to China and caught the viral bug, officially known as 2019-nCoV. Her husband had not traveled to China recently, authorities from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said.

This is the sixth confirmed case of the coronavirus in the US. In China, more than 8,000 people have been confirmed ill, and at least 170 have died. The virus has spread to at least 20 countries so far.

Public health authorities said the woman is doing well, and her husband - who has some underlying health issues - is in stable condition.

The two Illinois patients live together, which likely explains how the husband caught the virus, which can spread when someone is in close contact with a sick person.

In addition to this couple, lab tests have confirmed four other cases of the virus in the US, all in patients who were recently traveling in China. Two cases have been recorded in California, and one each in Arizona and Washington.

One of the best ways to protect yourself from this or any virus is to stay at least 6 feet away from people who are sick and practice good handwashing, with warm water and soap.

• Read more:
• When you should be worried about the Wuhan coronavirus, which has killed at least 170 people
• The Wuhan coronavirus outbreak has spread to 20 countries. Here's how to protect yourself while traveling.
• One map shows where the Wuhan coronavirus outbreak has spread - more than 8,000 cases are confirmed across 20 countries

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