WHO: "COVID-19" is New Name for Coronavirus Outbreak February 11, 2020

ABC News is reporting that the World Health organization has announced a new name for the outbreak commonly known as "coronavirus".

On a conference call this morning, WHO Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus announced the new name for the disease as "COVID-19". The name breaks down as :
  • CO = coronavirus
  • VI = virus
  • D = disease
  • 19 - year the outbreak began
WHO generally avoids naming diseases after people, animals, or geographic locations in order to prevent unfair stigma. 

As of this writing, 13 cases of COVID-19 have been discovered in the United States. For information of how a District physician should handle a suspected COVID-19 case, read our guide here.