While the deadly coronavirus spreads throughout the United States, Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak shared a troubling tweet on March 2, claiming that he and his wife, Janet Wozniak, might be America’s ‘patient zero’ after returning from a trip to China in early January.
Wozniak tweeted on Monday, “Checking out Janet’s bad cough. Started Jan. 4. We had just returned from China and may have both been patient zero in U.S. (@ West Coast Sports Institute in Santa Clara, CA).”
The 69-year-old electronic engineer and his wife, Janet Hill, whom he married in 2008, live in Los Gatos, California. Since publishing his tweet, Wozniak has yet to deliver further details as to whether or not either he or his wife have officially been tested for coronavirus. Wozniak’s “patient zero” tweet was sent hours after six deaths from the coronavirus were confirmed in Washington state.
Previously, on January 9, Wozniak tweeted about feeling ill. He wrote, “Recovering from serious illness caught during cruise. (@ Woz Home in Los Gatos, CA).”
Wozniak’s Foursquare Swarm app updates, he checked into three places in Vietnam in late December. However, there doesn’t appear to be a check-in made in China from his account.
Thankfully, Janet emailed USA Today with good news after her husband’s alarming tweet. She said that she has a sinus infection, not coronavirus.
According to the most research report from the Centers for Disease and Prevention, which was published on February 29, 2020, they are “responding to an outbreak of respiratory disease caused by a novel (new) coronavirus that was first detected in China and which has now been detected in 60 locations internationally, including in the United States. The virus has been named ‘SARS-CoV-2’ and the disease it causes has been named ‘coronavirus disease 2019.'”
A Coronavirus Patient Was Reported In Solano County, California, Where Wozniak Attended A Concert On March 1
On February 19, the first unknown origin case of the coronavirus was confirmed in the U.S., as reported by USA Today. The CDC said it was possible that “the patient may have been exposed to a returned traveler who was infected.”
The patient was from Solano County and was intubated and on a ventilator when they arrived at UC Davis Medical Center, according to a statement from the hospital, NPR reported.
On February 27, the UC Davis campus announced that three people were in isolation and one was being tested for COVID-19 while the other two are asymptomatic. On February 29, they announced all patients tested negative.
Three Cases Of Coronavirus Have Been Reported In Santa Clara, California – But No Deaths
Thus far, the origins of how the third confirmed patient in Santa Clara caught the coronavirus is unknown, as reported by The Mercury News. The patient was being treated at El Camino Hospital. This person, reported to be 65 years old, did not travel overseas and did not have any known contact with an infected person.
Dr. Sara Cody, the Santa Clara county’s health officer, said in a statement: “The department has been working to identify contacts and understand the extent of exposures. This new case indicates that there is evidence of community transmission but the extent is still not clear. I understand this may be concerning to hear, but this is what we have been preparing for. Now we need to start taking additional actions to slow down the spread of the disease.”
The other two cases of coronavirus in Santa Clara are not recent and were both mild. The first patient, a man who had traveled to China, was identified on January 31. He never was hospitalized and is now fully recovered.
The second case was a woman who had also recently traveled to China, confirmed on February 2. She didn’t require hospitalization and was able to be under observation at home while in good condition, MV Voice reported. She only sought treatment twice for outpatient care.
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