Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Situation Report - 33   [open pdf - 0B]

From the Highlights: "[1] Two new countries (Lebanon and Israel)reported cases of COVID-19 [coronavirus disease 2019] in the past 24 hours. [2]The role of environmental contamination in the transmission of COVID-19 is not yet clear. On 18 February, a new protocol entitled 'Surface sampling of coronavirus disease (COVID-19): A practical 'how to' protocol for health care and public health professionals' was published. This protocol was designed to determine viable virus presence and persistence on fomites in various locations where a COVID-19 patient is receiving care or isolated, and to understand how fomites may play a role in the transmission of the virus. [3] The WHO [World Health Organization] Director-General briefed the emergency ministerial meeting on COVID-19 organized by the African Union and the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention."