USA VP4 Mar 2020 13:41
Vice President Mike Pence - who is in charge of the US response to the coronavirus crisis - has stressed that any American can now be tested for the virus if a doctor deems it necessary.
“When I talked to some state officials, there was a sense that the tests would not be administered to people that were mildly symptomatic,” Mr Pence told reporters, in a White House briefing.
“We’re issuing clear guidance that subject to doctors’ orders, any American can be tested.”
It has raised questions over how quickly the government can escalate the production of testing kits - and how much patients will have to pay to be tested.
Nine deaths have now been confirmed in the US. All of those killed lived in Washington state."