State says more cases brought Nebraska COVID-19 total to 120
A nurse in protective gear tests for the COVID-19 and coronavirus virus at a drive-through test location at Bryant Health's LifePointe campus in Lincoln, Neb., Tuesday, March 24, 2020. Testing was by appointment only. (AP Photo/Nati Harnik)
Nebraska Gov. Pete Ricketts speaks at a press briefing in Lincoln, Neb., Wednesday, March 25, 2020. Nebraska approved an $83.6 million emergency relief package Wednesday to help public health officials respond to new coronavirus as the number of cases continued to rise and Gov. Pete Ricketts expanded the list of counties where restaurants and bars will be forced to close their dining areas. (AP Photo/Nati Harnik)
GERING, Neb. (AP) — The first confirmed case of COVID-19 has been reported in far western Nebraska's Scotts Bluff County, the state said.
The patient is a man in his 30s who has been in isolation at his home since Tuesday, local health officials said.
His case and 10 other newly reported cases brought the state total to 120, the Nebraska Health and Human Services Department said late Sunday. More than 2,200 people have tested negative.
For most people, COVID-19, the disease caused by the new coronavirus, causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough that clear up in two to three weeks. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia and death.
The department said earlier Sunday that it was working with the operators of an assisted living center in Blair to empty it because several workers and residents had tested positive for COVID-19. A ninth confirmed case in Washington County has been related to the outbreak at the facility, Carter Place.
Residents who tested positive and those considered to have been exposed to the new virus have been moved out and are in isolation at other health care facilities, the department said. Staffers who tested positive are self-isolating. The center will be disinfected.
Also Sunday, Gov. Pete Ricketts' order limiting public gatherings to 10 people or fewer was extended to Burt, Cuming, Madison and Stanton counties. Fourteen other counties are already under the restrictions.
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