WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 28th February, 2020) US health officials and scientists will have to clear any public statements regarding the status of the novel coronavirus in the United States with Vice President Mike Pence's office, the New York Times reported on Thursday.
The White House will require government health officials and scientists to coordinate any planned public statements on the novel coronavirus outbreak with Pence's office, the report said citing several officials familiar with the situation.
The officials said the request is not a move to try to control what public statements health officials make about the outbreak, but an effort to ensure all government agencies are coordinate the response against the virus.
Recently, US President Donald Trump and health officials have been giving conflicting information about the status of the novel coronavirus outbreak in the United States.
Trump said the outbreak in the country could worsen, but such a situation is not inevitable. However, US health officials said earlier this week that it was only a matter of time before the coronavirus turned into a global pandemic.
As of Wednesday, the number of US citizens diagnosed with the novel coronavirus stood at 59, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
On Wednesday, Trump appointed Pence as the lead official in charge of coordinating the US response effort to the novel coronavirus outbreak in the United States. In addition, Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar currently serves as chairman for the Coronavirus Task Force.
As of Thursday, more than 82,000 people have contracted the novel coronavirus worldwide of which some 2,800 have died and more than 33,000 have recovered.
