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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
COVID-19 (coronavirus disease 2019) is a disease caused
by a virus named SARS-CoV-It can be very contagious and
spreads quickly. Over one million people have died from
COVID-19 in the United States. COVID-19 most often
causes respiratory symptoms that can feel much like a
cold, the flu, or pneumonia. COVID-19 may attack more
than your lungs and respiratory system. Other parts of
your body may also be affected by the disease. Most
people with COVID-19 have mild symptoms, but some people
become severely ill. Some people including those with
minor or no symptoms will develop Post-COVID Conditions
– also called “Long COVID.”.
A novel coronavirus is a new coronavirus that has not
been previously identified. The virus causing
coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), is not the same as
the coronaviruses that commonly circulate among humans
and cause mild illness, like the common cold. A
diagnosis with coronavirus 229E, NL63, OC43, or HKU1 is
not the same as a COVID-19 diagnosis. Patients with
COVID-19 will be evaluated and cared for differently
than patients with common coronavirus diagnosis.
People in the U.S. may be worried or anxious about
friends and relatives who are living in or visiting
areas where COVID-19 is spreading. Some people are
worried about getting the disease from these people.
Fear and anxiety can lead to social stigma, for example,
toward people who live in certain parts of the world,
people who have traveled internationally, people who
were in quarantine, or healthcare professionals. Stigma
is discrimination against an identifiable group of
people, a place, or a nation. Stigma is associated with
a lack of knowledge about how COVID-19 spreads, a need
to blame someone, fears about disease and death, and
gossip that spreads rumors and myths. Stigma hurts
everyone by creating more fear or anger toward ordinary
people instead of focusing on the disease that is
causing the problem.
The virus that causes COVID-19 is spreading from
person-to-person. People are thought to be most
contagious when they are symptomatic (the sickest). That
is why CDC recommends that these patients be isolated
either in the hospital or at home (depending on how sick
they are) until they are better and no longer pose a
risk of infecting others. More recently the virus has
also been detected in asymptomatic persons. How long
someone is actively sick can vary so the decision on
when to release someone from isolation is made using a
test-based or non-test-based strategy (i.e. time since
illness started and time since recovery) in consultation
with state and local public health officials. The
decision involves considering the specifics of each
situation, including disease severity, illness signs and
symptoms, and the results of laboratory testing for that
patient. Learn more about CDC’s guidance on when to
release someone from isolation and discharge
hospitalized patients with COVID-19. For information on
when someone who has been sick with COVID-19 is able to
stop home isolation see Interim Guidance for
Discontinuation of In-Home Isolation for Patients with
COVID-19.
On February 11, 2020 the World Health Organization
announced an official name for the disease that is
causing the 2019 novel coronavirus outbreak, first
identified in Wuhan China. The new name of this disease
is coronavirus disease 2019, abbreviated as COVID-19. In
COVID-19, ‘CO’ stands for ‘corona,’ ‘VI’ for ‘virus,’
and ‘D’ for disease. Formerly, this disease was referred
to as “2019 novel coronavirus” or “2019-nCoV”. There are
many types of human coronaviruses including some that
commonly cause mild upper-respiratory tract illnesses.
COVID-19 is a new disease, caused be a novel (or new)
coronavirus that has not previously been seen in humans.
The name of this disease was selected following the
World Health Organization (WHO) best practice for naming
of new human infectious diseases.
The virus that causes COVID-19 is thought to spread
mainly from person to person, mainly through respiratory
droplets produced when an infected person coughs or
sneezes. These droplets can land in the mouths or noses
of people who are nearby or possibly be inhaled into the
lungs. Spread is more likely when people are in close
contact with one another (within about 6 feet). COVID-19
seems to be spreading easily and sustainably in the
community (“community spread”) in many affected
geographic areas. Community spread means people have
been infected with the virus in an area, including some
who are not sure how or where they became infected.
Learn what is known about the spread of newly emerged
coronaviruses.
CDC Stacks is a free, digital archive of scientific
research and literature produced by the Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). This online
archive is composed of curated collections tailored for
public health research needs. This repository is
retained indefinitely and is available for public health
professionals, researchers, as well as the general
public. CDC Stacks provides access to current CDC
research and literature such as the Open Access
Collection. In addition, CDC Stacks offers a historical
perspective that was previously not available, such as
the first 30 volumes of the Morbidity and Mortality
Weekly Report. As a fully-featured repository, CDC
stacks provides the ability to search the full text of
all documents, browse journal articles by public health
subjects, and explore the curate collections of
documents on relevant topics. Additional collections and
ongoing additions to existing collections are planned
for the future.