ABC’s Linsey Davis on the new alert being issued right here in the United States and wider so worry tonight. 

 

Panic tonight is evident on their faces in South Korea airports, shopping districts, even elementary schools. Young and old, covering up with a facemask, in an attempt to protect themselves from contracting MERS, the virus currently breaking heavily in South Korea, a disease so potent it’s believed to spread simply by coughing. MERS, which stands for the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome, is a severe cured respiratory illness with symptoms that include fever, cough, shortness of breath, pneumonia and kidney failure. Today, the CDC issuing an urgent warning about the deadly disease as South Korea battles a major outbreak.

 

In the past two weeks, confirmed cases in South Korea have skyrocketed to 122. Just today, they announced a 10th MERS death. 3800 more are quarantined, and more than 2600 schools closed. The fear is that just one person can cause an explosion of the virus. It is believed that the first person diagnosed in South Korea may have spread the disease to more than 20 people, who in turn spread to other people, David. 

 

Linsey, thank you. Let’s get right to ABC’s chief medical editor, Doctor Richard with us tonight, because we have two cases of MERS right here in the U.S. last year alone. How are we able to contain it too given what we’ve seen in South Korea. 

 

Listen, this, What they think happened in South Korea is a very contagious patient went in three different crowded hospital emergency rooms looking for treatment, infecting people as he waited. In our ERs, we do a much better job, isolating people who have respiratory symptoms. The CDC is now thinking ERs be ready.