Pence Says Americans May Be Tested for Coronavirus Even If No Signs of Symptoms

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) - US Vice President Mike Pence told reporters that the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) decided that Americans may be subject to tests for the novel coronavirus even if no symptoms of the disease are visible, according to a White House press pool report.

Pence said, according to the pool report on Tuesday, that "any American can be tested" for the novel coronavirus and that tests are no longer restricted to individuals with symptoms.

Earlier on Tuesday, health officials in the US state of Washington reported a ninth death from the coronavirus outbreak with 27 confirmed cases and 231 people under public health supervision.

The governor of the US state of North Carolina, Roy Cooper, confirmed the state's first case of the novel coronavirus on Tuesday and said that more cases are expected to emerge.

COVID-19 has infected nearly 93,000 people and killed more than 3,160 globally. Meanwhile, over 48,000 patients have recovered.

China leads the global infection tally despite seeing a slowdown in the pace of reported cases. More than 60 countries have confirmed infections globally, with South Korea, Italy, and Iran emerging as virus hotbeds last month.