KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Dr. Lee Norman, secretary of the Kansas Department of Health, is working to inform Kansans while dispelling fears and misconceptions about coronavirus.
In answering questions from 41 Action News viewers, Norman said that Europe's coronavirus outbreak was about a month behind China's, where the COVID-19 outbreak originated.
"People should be concerned about this," Norman said. "We're going to have a lot of coronavirus in the United States. And it's just not here on our shores yet, but we're watching the disease progress throughout Europe particularly, and our health systems are quite a bit like Europe. So I think we're going to have some of the same increase in case numbers."
However, Norman said that concerns should be the same as they are for influenza, meaning having clean hands, not touching one's face and staying home when ill.
"Normal public doesn't need to wear gloves, because they kind of falsely reassured you get the same stuff on gloves and then touch your face anyway, so it's all over," Norma said. "So I would leave the masks and gloves to the caregivers and hospitals and clinics, and then put a mask on people who are ill and coughing."
In responding to a question about avoiding events like the upcoming Big 12 tournament in Kansas City, Missouri, Norman said that "within six feet of a person is considered a contact."
"So Big 12 screaming people, coughing and sneezing, that's a good opportunity to catch something," Norman said, "and there hasn't been but in Kansas the one case, and so the disease burden the amount of disease is very low. So the likelihood of having anybody within your zone be infected with coronavirus not very great. I personally, if I had tickets to the game I wanted to go to, I would go. I would wash my hands. I would. I don't know that I'd get so fastidious as to take Clorox wipes to the seat. I'm sitting on the armrest if they were there, but I sure wouldn't argue if that's what somebody wanted to do."
Kansas officials held a press conference Saturday to announce a Johnson County woman under 50 years old is a "presumptive-positive" case. Her test has been forwarded to the CDC.
Missouri Gov. Mike Parson also announced Saturday that a St. Louis County woman in her 20s who recently traveled to Italy also is a "presumptive positive" case.
Both are self isolated in their homes.
Norman said good hygiene and common sense go a long way to help combat COVID-19.
