WHO declares novel coronavirus a public health emergency

The World Health Organization (WHO) declared an international public health emergency due to the novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) from China.

As of January 31, there were over 8,000 confirmed cases and 212 deaths worldwide.

Health Secretary Francisco Duque III confirmed the first case in the Philippines involving a woman who traveled from Wuhan to Hong Kong before arriving in Manila.

This is the sixth PHEIC declared by WHO since 2009; previous emergencies included swine flu (2009) and Ebola (2014).

The declaration aims to coordinate an international response to contain the spread of the virus.