News release from the Allen County Public Information Office:
Coronavirus Puts Allen County Officials On Guard
Health Dept. reminds public of immunization travel clinic services
(January 31, 2020) — While there have been no confirmed cases of coronavirus in Allen County, the Board of Commissioners and Health Commissioner Dr. Deborah McMahan are recommending anyone traveling internationally for business or pleasure take some preventive measures.
A letter from the Allen County Health Department is being sent to local business owners reminding them of the services provided by the department’s immunization travel clinic.
The new coronavirus — called 2019-nCoV — was first identified in Wuhan, China. It has spread in China and has been detected in multiple other countries including several cases in the United States. The World Health Organization has declared the outbreak a “global emergency” and the U.S. State Department is advising against all travel to China.
“We are very aware of the international travel that begins in Fort Wayne and want to make sure that employees who need to travel to this area contact a physician or our Health Department for recommendations,” said Dr. McMahan.
The travel clinic provides recommended vaccines at cost, along with an administrative fee, and also provides pertinent measures for people who are traveling for pleasure, mission trips or business.
“Though the CDC is considering this a low risk for the general population, we need to be prepared,” said the Board of Commissioners. “We have asked our health department to collaborate with community and healthcare agencies to ensure mechanisms are in place to adequately and appropriately identify any possible cases of the coronavirus and report them to the department immediately.”