Indiana College Cancels China Program as WHO Declares Global Health Emergency for the Coronavirus

WASHINGTON -- The World Health Organization has declared a global health emergency as the coronavirus continues to spread.

The WHO had resisted the move before Thursday, saying the virus was a global concern but mostly limited to China. But that was before the number of people who have died form the infection rose about 200 with another 10,000 infected.

"Part of the risk we face right now is that we don't know everything there is to know about the virus," said HHS Secretary Alex Azar. "But, I want to emphasize that does not prevent us from preparing and responding. At this point Americans should not worry for their own safety."

The State Department says Americans who are currently in China should consider leaving. So far there have only been five confirmed cases of the virus in the United States. None of them are in Indiana, but a woman traveling in northern Indiana from China is in isolation as the CDC awaits test results for the virus.

One Indiana college is suspending a program that sent students to China out of concern over the coronavirus. Taylor University yesterday said it is halting its program that was supposed to start this month in Xi'an, China. Xi'an is about 500 miles northwest of Wuhan, where the coronavirus outbreak started.