Coronavirus: 2 visitors test positive at AIPAC conference attended by Mike Pence, Pompeo

Two people have been tested positive for novel coronavirus after attending the pro-Israel lobby group's conference which was also attended by US Vice President Mike Pence, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and dozens of lawmakers. The American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) notified in an email that the infected people had travelled from New York to go to the March 1-3 event. According to reports, 22 new cases were also confirmed in New York, bringing the total number of confirmed cases in US to at least 332. 

AIPAC said, “We have confirmed that at least two Policy Conference attendees from New York have tested positive for the coronavirus”. It further added, “We have continued to remain in constant communication with the Westchester County Health Department and the DC Health Department which is coordinating with the New York Health Department, and national health authorities”.

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The conference attracted several high-profile attendees including Mike Pence, Mike Pompeo, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, and Democratic former White House hopeful Mike Bloomberg. AIPAC also circulated a statement which said that no immediate risk to attendees had been identified. It further also urged all attendees to follow the 'well-established' prevention tips. 

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Mike Pence is leading the US response to the novel coronavirus and at a recent briefing he said that the Trump administration is making readiness preparations on 'all-hands-on-deck effort'. He further said that he is also in contact with the nation's governors and making sure that each one has all the resources necessary on the ground. 

Nearly 330 confirmed cases in US

First detected in the city of Wuhan, in Hubei Province of China, the virus outbreak has now spread across more than 70 countries since December 2019. According to international media reports, the total number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Washington state rose to 27 and more than 330 cases in the United States have been reported. The deadly virus has also claimed almost 17 lives in the country.

As per reports, the total number of confirmed cases within China has reportedly hit 80,651 and more than one lakh worldwide. According to reports, the death toll in China has also surpassed 3,000 and the National Health Commission also confirmed more than 99 new cases. The death toll due to the deadly virus across the world also mounted to 3,497.

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