A new study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has found that the SARS-CoV-2 virus, or COVID-19, had infected people in the U.S. at least a month earlier than initially believed. The study examined 7,389 Red Cross blood donations collected between December 13, 2019 and January 17, 2020 and later sent to the CDC for testing to see if any included antibodies to the novel coronavirus. Antibodies were present in 106 of the donations, including 39 samples from California, Oregon and Washington state collected between December 13 and December 16. Researchers also found 67 blood donations with antibodies in Massachusetts, Michigan, Wisconsin or Iowa, and Connecticut or Rhode Island, all collected between December 30, 2019 and January 17, 2020. The findings suggest COVID-19 was infecting people on the U.S. West Coast as early as mid-December 2019, and elsewhere prior to the first officially reported U.S. case, which was in Washington state on January 20, 2020. The first officially reported case of the virus anywhere was in Wuhan, China on December 31, 2019.
Study finds COVID-19 in US earlier than initially believed
