More than 2,700 New York City residents are quarantined in their homes amid an uptick in coronavirus cases, reports the New York Post.
New York State saw a doubling of coronavirus cases overnight with 22 known cases Thursday. The residents being quarantined are mostly doing so on a voluntary basis, though City Health Commissioner Dr. Oxiris Barbot said the department was monitoring them via phone calls.
"We reach out to them on a daily basis to make sure they are not developing symptoms," Barbot said at a press briefing.
"They have a phone number to call us if and when they develop symptoms. There haven't been any individuals in that group that have reached out to us," she added.
New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio on Wednesday urged voluntary quarantine for travelers from five nations: China, Iran, Italy, South Korea, and Japan. Anyone returning from these nations who has respiratory illness should seek medical care immediately, de Blasio said.
The virus, which started in Wuhan, China, has infected more than 97,000 people and killed approximately 3,345.
Barbot said there would be consequences for anyone who violates the quarantine order.
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