About 200 Linked To RI School Trip Under Quarantine

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) — Roughly 200 people have been quarantined in Rhode Island because they have some connection to a school trip to Italy that has so far resulted in three cases of the new coronavirus, state officials said Thursday. Gov. Gina Raimondo also said in a briefing about the state’s new measures to respond to the virus’s spread that a team from the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has been deployed to Rhode Island and that officials will be opening additional coronavirus testing sites across the state. The Democrat said all state employees who have traveled to the coronavirus hotspots of China, Japan, South Korea, Iran and Italy in the past two weeks have been ordered to self-quarantine at home for at least 14 days. She urged other employers to impose similar policies and for schools and other organizations to cancel any planned group trips overseas. Signage outside of St. Raphael Academy on March 2, 2020 in Pawtucket, Rhode Island. (Photo by Scott Eisen/Getty Images) Raimondo said people should also refrain from their visiting loved ones in nursing homes and hospitals if they’re feeling ill. She said residents should also call the state’s coronavirus hotline first, rather than go to a hospital or doctor’s office, if they’re experiencing symptoms such as fever, coughing or difficulty breathing. “We have to be smart about this and not panic,” Raimondo said, adding that the risk of contracting th...
Source: WBZ-TV - Breaking News, Weather and Sports for Boston, Worcester and New Hampshire - Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Tags: Boston News Health Coronavirus Pawtucket RI St. Raphael Academy Source Type: news