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The United States used to have cachet in China. Not anymore.

Loggers encroach on an uncontacted tribe, and the government shrugs

U.N. chief ‘trusts’ Israel will comply with ICJ order to halt Rafah assault

Nationals loosen up and ride MacKenzie Gore to a win over the Mariners

The Nats’ offense is floundering. There are a few reasons.

At STK Steakhouse, the ‘vibe’ is loud, expensive and largely tasteless 

Why Google’s AI might recommend you mix glue into your pizza

Boeing continues to struggle with spacecraft problems ahead of human flight

Kabosu, side-eyeing Shiba inu who inspired the ‘doge’ meme, dies at 18

Here’s who The Post endorses in D.C. Council primary elections

How (not) to fix the border

The Trump hush money trial shows how far the GOP has fallen

Want to find hidden gem restaurants? Follow the business crowd to lunch. 

American Airlines fires lawyers after blaming child for being filmed in bathroom

Budget airlines are dropping notorious fees. What changed?

Progressive Democrats aren’t turning activism into election wins

More voters are identifying as Republicans. That could bode ill for Democrats in November.

U.S. and allies move to tap frozen Russian funds despite Kremlin threats

Miss Manners: How do I know if something is a gift?

Ask Amy: I don’t think my son’s girlfriend is right for him

Carolyn Hax: If you’re happy alone, then why would you want a relationship?

A year after paying off our 2.75% mortgage, we still have no regrets

Home-insurance payouts are shrinking. Here’s how to prevent the worst.

Maxed out on your credit card? Here’s how to dig out.

I was homeless as a kid. Here’s how I survived. 

Kittens or puppies? Animals left at shelter turned out to be foxes — again.

A teen dropped out of high school during WWII. Now 99, she just graduated.

In Milwaukee public housing, a padlocked patio becomes a battleground

‘America is a nation of Charlies’ | Opinion

The strengths and weaknesses of the case against Trump

Moments after President Trump announced that Vice President Pence will take over the White House’s coronavirus task force, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention confirmed that a northern California person has contracted the coronavirus without traveling outside the United States or coming in contact with another patient known to have the infection — the first sign that the disease may be spreading within a local community.

The president said the risk to Americans is “very low” and that people are being screened coming into the country from infected areas.

Meanwhile, the Dow Jones industrial average endured its worst two-day slump in four years Tuesday. On Wednesday, it was up 300 points shortly after open, but closed down about 124 points.

On European and Asian financial markets, economic alarms continued to flash, however, with cases spreading and little sign that the epidemic was relenting after the CDC warned of the “inevitable” spread in the United States of covid-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus.

France reported the first death of a French citizen from the epidemic as cases grew rapidly across Europe, with Spain confirming eight new cases in the past 24 hours and new infections reported in Germany, Greece, France, Croatia, Austria and Switzerland. A new case in Brazil marks the first known case in Latin America. Although China announced a decline in new confirmed cases on Wednesday, the number of infected people soared in South Korea to more than 1,200, with more expected in the coming days as the country attempts to test 200,000 people.

● A new case of coronavirus was confirmed in the United States on Wednesday, bringing the total number of cases in the country to 60. The CDC later said the northern California person had contracted the virus without traveling outside the United States or coming in contact with another patient known to have the infection.

● France reported the first coronavirus death of a French citizen amid a dramatic uptick in cases within Europe. Most new cases are connected to an outbreak in northern Italy, still the largest on the continent.

● Brazil confirmed its first case, which also marks the first known case in Latin America.

● Statistics released by the Chinese government showed a decline in the number of new cases in mainland China; an additional 406 cases were reported Wednesday morning, along with 52 deaths. All but five of the new cases and all of the new deaths were in Hubei province.

● South Korea reported 284 additional cases of the coronavirus Wednesday, raising the national tally to 1,261. That number is expected to rise in coming days as the country begins the mass testing of more than 200,000 members of a <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia_pacific/south-korean-coronavirus-spike-linked-to-doomsday-sect-with-messianic-leader/2020/02/21/cd3e1220-54c2-11ea-9e47-59804be1dcfb_story.html" title="www.washingtonpost.com">messianic religious movement</a> at the center of an outbreak in the city of Daegu.

<a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2020/01/22/mapping-spread-new-coronavirus/?arc404=true" title="www.washingtonpost.com">Mapping the spread of the coronavirus</a> | <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2020/02/07/biggest-questions-about-new-coronavirus-what-we-know-so-far/">What we know about the virus</a>

Asian stock markets extended losses Thursday as the spread of the coronavirus outbreak kept investors on edge.

The growing fears of a pandemic had already wiped more than $3.6 trillion from global stock markets by Wednesday’s close, Reuters reported.

MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan fell 0.5 percent and is down more than 4 percent for the week.

Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 dropped 1 percent and has lost 7 percent this week. Japan’s Nikkei fell 1.7 percent to its lowest since October. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng fell 1 percent.

U.S. oil futures were down nearing $48 a barrel in Asia.

<b> </b>House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) issued separated statements criticizing Donald Trump’s response to coronavirus Wednesday, which the sepaker called “opaque and chaotic.”

“The American people need a well-coordinated, whole-of-government, fully-funded response to keep them safe from the coronavirus threat,” Pelosi wrote. “The Trump Administration has left critical positions in charge of managing pandemics at the National Security Council and the Department of Homeland Security vacant.”

In a <a href="https://twitter.com/AOC/status/1232839556443058176">tweet</a>, Ocasio-Cortez responded to Trump’s decision to place Vice President Pence in charge of the White House’s coronavirus task force, writing, “Mike Pence literally does not believe in science.”

“It is utterly irresponsible to put him in charge of US coronavirus response as the world sits on the cusp of a pandemic,” she tweeted, citing Pence’s <a href="https://www.theverge.com/2020/2/26/21155286/mike-pence-coronavirus-response-hiv">response to HIV</a> as governor of Indiana . “This decision could cost people their lives.”<b> </b>

Michael Brice-Saddler

Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar, who has been leading the coronavirus task force, was blindsided by the White House decision to put Vice President Pence in charge of the response to the virus outbreak, according to five people familiar with the situation, who said Azar learned of the decision only moments before the Wednesday evening news conference.

Pence is scheduled to run a coronavirus task force meeting at HHS on Thursday, two sources familiar with the plans said. One senior administration official said Pence was going to HHS to lead the meeting, instead of the White House, “as a show of support to Azar.”

Earlier in the day, Azar pushed back on reports that the administration was considering appointing a czar to run the response. President Trump said he did not consider Pence a czar, but noted that everyone involved in the response would report to the vice president.

Yasmeen Abutaleb

Joshua Dawsey

The Chinese government on Thursday reported 433 new confirmed coronavirus infections, 29 new deaths and 508 new suspected cases by the end of the day Wednesday. Twenty-six of the deaths were in the Hubei province.

This brought China’s cumulative totals to 78,497 cases and 2,744 deaths. Experts have warned against gleaning too much from Chinese statistics and day-to-day changes.

As South Korea’s total number of coronavirus cases continued to grow Thursday, the U.S. Department of State issued a <a href="https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/international-travel/International-Travel-Country-Information-Pages/SouthKorea.html#ExternalPopup">Level 3 travel advisory</a> for the country — urging citizens to “avoid travel due to serious risks to safety and security.”

If travel to South Korea is essential, the State Department recommends adhering to CDC guidelines for the<a href="https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/international-travel/International-Travel-Country-Information-Pages/SouthKorea.html#ExternalPopup"> prevention of coronavirus</a>.

SEOUL — The U.S. and South Korean militaries said Thursday they are postponing a key joint military exercise as South Korea reported another jump in coronavirus cases.

“In light of the ROK government’s declaration of the highest alert level ‘severe’ on COVID-19, the ROK-US Alliance made the decision to postpone the combined command post training for the ROK-US Combined Forces Command until further notice,” U.S.-South Korean Combined Forces Command said in a statement.

With 334 new virus cases, South Korea’s national tally of the virus jumped to 1,595, which includes a U.S. soldier stationed in the country.

The 23-year-old man is the first member of the U.S. military to contract the virus.

Thursday’s jump was expected as South Korea conducted over 10,000 virus tests the previous day.

President Trump said the United States may need to restrict travel to virus-hit countries outside China.

At a news conference on Wednesday, Trump responded to a question about travel restrictions on Italy and South Korea, saying, “At the right time we may do that. Right now it’s not the right time.”

He said the two countries have been “hit pretty hard” by the coronavirus.

Min Joo Kim

A northern California person has contracted the coronavirus without traveling outside the United States or coming in contact with another patient known to have the infection, the first sign that the disease may be spreading within a local community, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported Wednesday night.

How the person acquired the respiratory disease is unknown.

“It’s possible this could be an instance of community spread of covid-19, which would be the first time this has happened in the United States,” the CDC said in a statement. The health agency left open the possibility, however “that the patient may have been exposed to a returned traveler who was infected.”

The state of California, however, called the case its first instance of community transmission. The case was first reported by The Washington Post.

Community spread would represent a significant turn for the worse in the battle against the virus. To date, the United States has 60 known cases of the infection, with 59 among people who traveled to Asia or were spouses of people who went there. The vast majority, 42, picked up the virus while quarantined on the Diamond Princess cruise ship off Japan.

The CDC said the case “was detected through the U.S. public health system — picked up by astute clinicians.” The agency said only that the person lived in California.

If the infection is confirmed to be a case of “community spread,” said Jennifer Nuzzo, epidemiologist and senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security, “it would confirm what we have long suspected — that there is a good chance there already are people infected in this country and that the virus is circulating undetected. It points to the need for expanded surveillance so we know how many more are out there and how to respond.”

The individual is a resident of Solano County, according to the California Department of Public Health. The patient is being treated at UC Davis Medical Center, according to a person familiar with the case who spoke on the condition of anonymity because the details are not public.

Read more <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/northern-californian-tests-positive-for-coronavirus-in-first-us-case-with-no-link-to-foreign-travel/2020/02/26/b2088840-58fb-11ea-9000-f3cffee23036_story.html?itid=lk_inline_manual_57">here</a>.

Lenny Bernstein

Lena H. Sun

Laurie McGinley

Trump announced at a news conference that Vice President Pence will take over the White House’s coronavirus task force.

“We have quarantined those infected and those at risk,” he said.

Trump said he’ll leave it up to Congress to decide how much money to allocate in emergency funding, that he’s willing “to spend whatever is appropriate” and “be satisfied with whatever” amount.

He also said the United States is “rapidly developing a vaccine,” but did not provide any more details. Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, contradicted the president, saying a vaccine won’t be ready for more than a year.

Trump sought to play down the impact on Americans focusing instead on the first 15 U.S. cases, referring to them as “the original 15.”

Colby Itkowitz

Saudi Arabia  suspended religious visits to the holy cities of Mecca and Medina on Thursday because of concerns about coronavirus, its Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced.

The decision, which will affect those seeking to perform pilgrimage travel to the country, such as the <a href="https://english.alarabiya.net/en/coronavirus/2020/02/27/Saudi-Arabia-suspends-entry-for-Umrah-pilgrimage-due-to-coronavirus.html">Umrah pilgrimage</a>, was aimed at forestalling the spread of the disease, according to the Saudi-owned Al Arabiya news channel. The suspension will also affect those seeking to visit the Prohpet’s Mosque in Medina.

It wasn’t immediately clear how long the suspension would last.

ROME — For nearly a week, he has been one of the most visible political figures in Italy, the president of the region at the center of the country’s coronavirus outbreak.

But Wednesday night, Lombardy regional President Attilio Fontana said he would be voluntarily placing himself in quarantine for the next 14 days.

Fontana said he is taking the precaution after a “close collaborator” of his was found to have contracted the virus. Fontana underwent testing — causing the cancellation of his scheduled news conference — and though  his tests were negative, he said he would follow the same protocol that health officials were asking of other Italians.

“So for two weeks I’ll try to live in a kind of self-isolation so as to chiefly protect those around me,” Fontana said in a Facebook video, in which he strapped on a sea-green face mask as he spoke.

“So when you see me like this in the next few days,” Fontana said, “don’t be scared, it’s always me.”

Chico Harlan

Add Microsoft to the list of companies lowering earnings expectations over coronavirus worries.

The Redmond, Wash., software giant said Wednesday that it would not meet the fiscal third-quarter guidance it offered in January for the unit that includes its Windows operating system sales. At the time, Microsoft said it expected $10.75 billion to $11.15 billion in quarterly revenue for its More Personal Computing segment.

While demand from personal computer makers for Windows remains strong, the company said the supply chain for the business is “returning to normal operations at a slower pace than anticipated” because of the coronavirus outbreak. As a result, the company believes it will not meet its earlier guidance for the segment.

Microsoft did not provide an updated forecast. But Stifel Nicolaus & Co. analyst Brad Reback, who had expected Microsoft to generate between $3 billion and $4 billion in sales of Windows to PC makers in the quarter, said it is not “absurd to think half of that could be impacted.” And “several hundred million dollars” of sales from Microsoft’s Surface PC business also could be at risk, he said.

But those sales, Reback noted, are not lost, just deferred until the effect of the coronavirus subsides.

Last week, Apple warned that it expects to miss revenue goals in the current quarter because of the coronavirus outbreak.

Jay Greene

Romania’s health minister on Wednesday confirmed the first case of coronavirus in the country, Reuters<a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/china-virus-romania/romania-confirms-first-case-of-coronavirus-health-minister-idUSXXN2AQ00A"> reported</a>. The man was reportedly from the county of Gorj, but additional information about him was not immediately available.

“The man had been in direct contact with an Italian citizen who traveled to Romania earlier this month,” Health Minister Victor Costache told reporters, according to Reuters. “He is in a good condition and will be transferred to a Bucharest infectious hospital.”

Rep. Donna Shalala (D-Fla.), who served as the health and human services secretary in Bill Clinton’s administration, chastised Trump over his planned news briefing this evening, arguing that only medical professionals and scientists should be speaking to the public about the coronavirus.

Shalala said during an appearance on MSNBC that this was especially so when it comes to Trump.

“This is an anti-science administration,” she said. “The last person the American people trust is the president of the United States talking about science.”

Millions of Christians around the world marked Ash Wednesday, the start of the 40-day Lent period ahead of Easter — even as the coronavirus led to some unconventional observances.

Concern In The Philippines As The Wuhan Covid-19 Spreads

Some attending Pope Francis’s mass in St. Peter’s Square donned face masks, while other churches in Italy declined to hold mass at all as the coronavirus outbreak there continues to grow. In Asia, some congregations broadcast services online. In the Philippines, Catholic nuns sprinkled ash on congregants’ heads rather than rubbing it in with their fingers, after Catholic leaders there recommended the alternative practice to minimize physical contact. In Singapore, where nearly 100 people have been diagnosed with the virus, churches broadcast services online to prevent people from crowding together.

Hong Kong banned Catholic masses as a preventive measure earlier this month. And in South Korea, where two churches have been identified as key conduits for the spread of the virus, churches remained closed Wednesday. It was the first time since Catholic churches were established there more than 200 years ago that they were closed, <a href="https://www.sltrib.com/news/nation-world/2020/02/26/globe-braces-long-battle/" title="www.sltrib.com">the Associated Press reported.</a>

Miriam Berger

BEIRUT — Iraq’s Ministry of Health announced new restrictions to combat the spread of coronavirus late Wednesday, suspending schools and universities and closing cafes, theaters, clubs and any public gathering areas in the country for 10 days, from Thursday until March 7.

It also banned citizens from traveling to nine countries, including Iran, China, Bahrain and Kuwait, and banned the entry of travelers from Kuwait and Bahrain.

The announcement came a day after four new cases were reported in Iraq. The four  patients were the first citizens to contract the virus, bringing the total of infected to five in the country.

Iraq has closed crossings along its borders with Iran, which has emerged as an epicenter for the spread of the virus in the Middle East. Cases linked to Iranian tourists or visits to Iran have emerged in Lebanon, Bahrain, Oman and Kuwait.

Sarah Dadouch

Senior Defense Department officials told lawmakers Wednesday that they had no initial answer to whether they anticipated asking for more money to deal with the virus threat within the military.

“We have not had that discussion yet,” Defense Secretary Mark T. Esper said at a budget hearing before the House Armed Services Committee. “This is moving very quickly,” he acknowledged, but “I want to discuss it with the Chairman, the combatant commanders,” including the commander of the U.S. Northern Command.

Mark A. Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said that, in the absence of those discussions, “we can’t give you a definitive answer right now” about funding.

Esper said he has been in direct contact with Gen. Robert Abrams, commander of U.S. forces in South Korea, which has the second largest number of confirmed cases outside China. One U.S. soldier, diagnosed with the virus this week was transferred by ambulance to an isolation unit at Camp Humphreys, the main U.S. base on the divided Korean Peninsula, the independent military newspaper <a href="https://www.stripes.com/news/pacific/south-korea-based-soldier-is-first-us-service-member-to-test-positive-for-coronavirus-1.620320" title="www.stripes.com">Stars and Stripes reported </a>from Seoul. The paper said that “several service members and others” had also been quarantined on the base “as a protective measure.”

Abrams has taken some actions, including restricting access to U.S. bases, Esper said. At Camp Humphreys Wednesday, lines as long as five hours formed at entry gates, where soldiers wearing gloves and face masks took temperatures and questioned morning commuters, Stars and Stripes said.

Karen DeYoung

JERUSALEM — Israel’s Ministry of Health <a href="https://www.israelhayom.co.il/article/736957" title="www.israelhayom.co.il">updated its travel warning Wednesday</a>,  cautioning the Israeli public against traveling abroad, and in particular against participating in large gatherings such as conferences or religious events as the coronavirus outbreak continues to spread.

The new advisory also added new restrictions for visitors from Italy, where an outbreak is growing.

Starting Wednesday, anyone arriving from Italy will be required to self-quarantine for 14 days. The mandate is delayed to allow travelers time to prepare, the Ministry of Health said in a statement.

Ruth Eglash

With U.S. doctors and nurses just starting to gear up for the spread of coronavirus, Chinese medical workers have posted a remarkable account of what life is like there — a warning of sorts about what other countries may experience in coming weeks and months.

In a letter <a href="https://www.thelancet.com/journals/langlo/article/PIIS2214-109X(20)30065-6/fulltext" title="www.thelancet.com">published in the Lancet</a>, a medical journal, two nurses describe how medical workers in Wuhan have developed ulcers on their ears and foreheads from wearing protective masks all the time. They said equipment shortages are so severe, they are cleaning and reusing plastic goggles to the point they are hard to see through anymore.

Yingchun Zeng, from the Guangzhou Medical hospital, and Yan Zhen, from the Sun Yat-sen Memorial hospital, are among  the 14,000 nurses from across China sent to Wuhan as reinforcements.

Their account paints a stark, vivid picture of the front lines. Putting on protective gear takes so much time and energy, they said, many now abstain from eating and drinking two hours before going into an isolation ward so they won’t have to go to the bathroom. As a result, some nurses’ mouths are covered in blisters. Others have fainted from hypoglycemia.

On top of the physical exhaustion and challenges, medical workers are being stretched to their limits psychologically, say the two nurses, who arrived in Wuhan on Jan. 24. “While we are professional nurses, we are also human. Like everyone else, we feel helplessness, anxiety, and fear,” they said. “Even experienced nurses may also cry, possibly because we do not know how long we need to stay here and we are the highest-risk group for COVID-19 infection.”

They ended their letter in the Lancet — one of the world’s most prestigious medical journals — with a plea: “We need much more help. We are asking nurses and medical staff from countries around the world to come to China now, to help us in this battle.”

William Wan

TORONTO — A woman who recently traveled to Iran has tested positive for coronavirus in Canada, public health officials said Wednesday, bringing the total number of people with the virus in the country to 12.

The Toronto-based woman, who is in her 60s, returned from Iran on Feb. 15, Eileen de Villa, the city’s chief medical officer, told reporters. The woman had a cough, a sore throat, a fever and body aches and went to a Toronto hospital on Feb. 24, where she was tested for the virus.

Health officials declined to provide details on the woman’s flight. They are investigating whom she may have had contact with during the nine days between her arrival in Toronto and her visit to the hospital. She is now in self-isolation at home.

Most of the people with coronavirus in Canada had recently traveled to China or had close contact with people who had done so and were later found to have the virus. This is the third case in Canada involving a patient with a recent history of travel to Iran or contact with someone who recently traveled there.

David Williams, Ontario’s chief medical officer of health, said that the risk to Ontarians posed by the novel coronavirus is “low.” Officials are working to determine whether people can be reinfected with the virus, he said, as well as whether those who are infected develop immunity to it.

Earlier this week, the last group of Canadians who were repatriated from Wuhan, China, were released from their 14-day quarantine at an Ontario military base. None has tested positive for the virus, Williams said.

Amanda Coletta

U.S. officials have discovered a new coronavirus case in the United States just since Wednesday morning, Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar told a congressional committee  Wednesday.

“As of this morning, we still had only 14 cases of the novel coronavirus detected in the United States involving travel to or close contacts with travelers,” Azar said. “Coming into this hearing, I was informed that we have a 15th confirmed case, the epidemiology of which we are still discerning.”

That brings the total number of cases in the United States to around 60, because the U.S. has brought back 42 people from the Diamond Princess cruise ship in Japan who have the virus, and there are another three cases as well.

“While the immediate risks to the American public remain low, there is now community transmission in a number of places, including outside of Asia, which is deeply concerning,” Azar said. “We are working closely with state and local and private-sector partners to prepare for mitigating the virus’s potential spread in the United States as we expect to see more cases here.”

Erica Werner

Georgia confirmed its first coronavirus case Wednesday, joining a growing list of countries from Europe and the Middle East reporting new infections as the epidemic grows.

Georgian Health Minister Ekaterine Tikaradze said the patient is a Georgian citizen who had been traveling back from Iran via Azerbaijan, which borders both countries, <a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/china-health-georgia/georgia-reports-first-coronavirus-case-in-the-country-health-minister-idUSL5N2AQ7LC" title="www.reuters.com">Reuters reported. </a>

“He was immediately taken to a hospital from the border checkpoint,” the news agency reported Tikaradze as saying. In recent days, Iran and Italy joined Japan and South Korea as key clusters of the virus outside China, where the outbreak began.

Several other countries that have announced coronavirus cases in recent days have also linked them to <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/middle_east/iran-struggles-to-contain-coronavirus-outbreak-putting-mideast-countries-at-risk/2020/02/26/bb654f30-57f3-11ea-8efd-0f904bdd8057_story.html?itid=lk_inline_manual_133" title="www.washingtonpost.com">the growing outbreak in Iran</a>.

The World Health Organization has pressed China for information about coronavirus infections <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/virus-takes-big-toll-on-chinas-health-workers/2020/02/14/a0681256-4f5d-11ea-b721-9f4cdc90bc1c_story.html?tid=lk_inline_manual_2&amp;itid=lk_inline_manual_2&itid=lk_inline_manual_135" title="www.washingtonpost.com">among health-care workers</a>, but Beijing has not provided it — leaving a data gap that could hurt the global response.

In response to questions from The Washington Post, WHO said it has repeatedly asked Chinese officials for “disaggregated” data — meaning specific figures broken out from the overall numbers — that could shed light on hospital transmission and help assess the level of risk facing front-line workers.

“We received disaggregated information at intervals, though not details about health-care workers,” said Tarik Jasaravic, a spokesman for the Geneva-based organization.

The comment, in a Saturday email to The Post, was one of the first instances that the U.N. health agency has directly addressed <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia_pacific/chinese-officials-note-serious-problems-in-coronavirus-response-the-world-health-organization-keeps-praising-them/2020/02/08/b663dd7c-4834-11ea-91ab-ce439aa5c7c1_story.html?tid=lk_inline_manual_9&amp;itid=lk_inline_manual_9&itid=lk_inline_manual_138" title="www.washingtonpost.com">shortcomings in China’s reporting</a> or handling of the coronavirus crisis.

It could renew fear that Beijing is either unable or unwilling to share all of the information that scientists and public health experts need to understand the virus.

Details about front-line worker infections are “critical for developing preparedness plans in countries around the world,” said Jennifer Nuzzo, an epidemiologist and senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security.

“Giving that information to the World Health Organization is also important from a credibility standpoint,” she said.

WHO’s credibility is also on the line. In recent weeks, <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2020/02/01/early-missteps-state-secrecy-china-likely-allowed-coronavirus-spread-farther-faster/?tid=lk_inline_manual_20&amp;itid=lk_inline_manual_20&itid=lk_inline_manual_142" title="www.washingtonpost.com">as evidence mounted</a> that China silenced whistleblowers and undercounted cases, WHO has continued to heap praise on Beijing.

“China should be transparent, and WHO should be transparent with the broader community,” said Lawrence Gostin, a professor of global health law at Georgetown University who also provides technical assistance to the WHO.

“This is health communication 101,” he continued. “Tell us everything you know, tell us what you don’t know and tell us what you are doing to find out what you don’t know.”

Emily Rauhala

The Food and Drug Administration is stepping up its monitoring of the drug supply for potential shortages, including 20 products that may be at risk due to the <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/coronavirus-outbreak-edges-closer-to-pandemic/2020/02/21/03afafc0-5429-11ea-9e47-59804be1dcfb_story.html?tid=lk_inline_manual_2&amp;itid=lk_inline_manual_2&itid=lk_inline_manual_146" title="www.washingtonpost.com">coronavirus outbreak that has shut down much of China</a> and is raising concerns about the nation’s convoluted and highly outsourced <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/science/a-tiny-pharmacy-is-identifying-big-problems-with-common-drugs-including-zantac/2019/11/08/6dd009ca-eb76-11e9-9c6d-436a0df4f31d_story.html?tid=lk_inline_manual_2&amp;itid=lk_inline_manual_2&itid=lk_inline_manual_146" title="www.washingtonpost.com">pharmaceutical supply chain</a>.

The crisis highlights a growing vulnerability: Not only are many medications used in the United States manufactured overseas, but critical ingredients — and the chemicals used to make them — also are overwhelmingly made in China and other countries. The supply chain’s roots now run so deep that it is difficult to fully anticipate where critical shortages could emerge.

Rosemary Gibson, author of the book “ChinaRx” and a senior adviser at the Hastings Center, a bioethics think tank, said China has a “global choke hold” on the chemical components that make up key ingredients.

The FDA said no companies are reporting drug shortages linked to the coronavirus. But in a sign of its efforts to get ahead of any problems, an FDA spokeswoman said the agency has contacted 180 China-based prescription-drug manufacturers, asking them to evaluate their supply chains and reminding them that they are required to notify the FDA of any coming disruptions. Many U.S. drug companies buy Chinese-made active pharmaceutical ingredients, called APIs, in bulk, insulating themselves against a supply disruption for weeks, months or even a year.

The 20 products the agency is watching especially closely use raw materials that all come from China, the FDA said.

Carolyn Y. Johnson

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — Pakistan has confirmed two cases of coronavirus, the country’s top health official said Wednesday, marking the first recorded cases of the virus in the country.

“Both cases are being taken care of according to clinical standard protocols & both of them are stable,” Zafar Mirza, the state minister of health, tweeted Wednesday. “No need to panic, things are under control.”

Mirza said he would hold a news conference Thursday.

The health official previously had expressed concern about the growing outbreak in neighboring Iran. Pakistan has temporarily closed its border with Iran to try to prevent the virus from spreading.

Several Pakistani students studying in China also have been diagnosed with the virus. The Pakistani government has refused to repatriate hundreds of its citizens stranded in Wuhan, China, the epicenter of the outbreak.

Shaiq Hussain

Siobhán O’Grady

Boston Red Sox prospect Chih-Jung Liu was scheduled to start spring training in Fort Myers, Fla., last week. But the Taiwanese pitcher had to put his plans on hold when coronavirus fears prompted the team to quarantine him in his hotel room.

A Red Sox spokesman <a href="https://www.bostonglobe.com/sports/redsox/2020/02/25/red-sox-prospect-arrives-from-taiwan-and-immediately-quarantined/ReLS854zCSZc6GondJgIHJ/story.html" title="www.bostonglobe.com">told the Boston Globe</a> that the team is acting out of an “overabundance of caution” by keeping Liu in temporary isolation. The Globe reported that Liu wrote on Facebook that he is passing his time reading and “watching information about the team” online. He’s being monitored by Red Sox health officials.

The promising right-hander signed with the team late last year, earning a $750,000 bonus.

Another Taiwanese Red Sox player, infielder Tzu-Wei Lin, was temporarily quarantined earlier this month, the Globe reported. “I had been here for a week and they said I needed to go back to my apartment,” the Globe reported Lin as saying. “I was fine. I stayed away for one day and that was it.”

More than 30 cases of the virus have been confirmed in Taiwan.

A Chinese national infected with the coronavirus could face up to six months behind bars in Singapore over allegations that he lied to authorities about his movements within the city.

Singaporean authorities said they charged the 38-year-old man from Wuhan, China, on Wednesday under the city-state’s rarely used Infectious Disease Act, Reuters reported. The man came down with the coronavirus in late January, and his wife was quarantined at the time as a precaution.

Officials allege that the man failed to comply with Singapore’s rigorous contact-tracing protocols. He has been charged “in view of the potentially serious repercussions of the false information … and the risk they could have posed to public health,” Singapore’s Health Ministry said,<a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-china-health-singapore/coronavirus-carrier-faces-jail-in-singapore-for-lying-over-movements-idUSKCN20K1E7?il=0" title="www.reuters.com"> according to Reuters</a>.

He is facing a fine of about $7,000 or six months in prison as a first-time offender.

In a related move Wednesday, Singaporean authorities revoked the residency of a 45-year-old man who they said did not comply with a mandated 14-day quarantine after returning from China, Reuters reported.

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