US President Donald Trump has suggested Americans take the same precautions they would during flu season.
Report informs, citing The Hill, that Trump said people should avoid unnecessary contact with public surfaces and people who are ill, as he always has.
"I do it a lot anyway, as you've probably heard. Wash your hands. Stay clean. You don't have to necessarily grab every handrail unless you have to," Trump said. "I mean, view this as the same as the flu. When somebody sneezes — I mean, I try to bail out as much as possible with the sneezing."
The president followed the warning with an anecdote.
"I had a man come up to me a week ago. I hadn't seen him in a long time, and I said, 'How are you doing?' He said, 'Fine. Fine,'" Trump said, recounting the story. "He hugs me. I say, 'Are you well?' He says, 'No.' He says, 'I have the worst fever and the worst flu,' and he's hugging me, kissing me. So I say excuse me and go wash my hands. You want to treat this as you would the flu."
The number of confirmed cases in the US rose to 60 on Wednesday, including 45 from a single cruise ship abroad.