Defense Secretary Mark Esper has instructed the Pentagon to ready military housing for 1,000 people as it prepares to quarantine those who may have the new coronavirus.
“Earlier today, we have learned that Defense Secretary Mark Esper approved a request from the Department of Health and Human Services to provide DOD housing support for up to 1,000 people who may need to be quarantined as they travel back to the United States and may have been in places where they could’ve been exposed to the coronavirus,” said CNN Pentagon correspondent Barbara Starr.
The news comes after Massachusetts confirmed the eighth U.S. case of the coronavirus, which has killed more than 250 and infected more than 1,000 people in China.
“It’s a stark, sudden reminder of just how much this public health situation is really expanding its impact,” added Starr.
This week, 195 Americans were put under quarantine after returning on a State Department-chartered plane that brought the passengers home from Wuhan, the epicenter of the coronavirus.
