First Colorado patient tests positive for coronavirus as outbreak spreads

Colorado Gov. Jared Polis (D) announced Thursday that health officials have confirmed the first presumptive case of the coronavirus within the state.  

The patient in question is considered a “presumptive” case because they tested positive in a state-administered test but have not yet received results from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). 

#BREAKING: We have learned of the first presumptive positive case of COVID-19 (coronavirus) in Colorado.

We are diligently managing this situation and will be holding a press conference to update Coloradans with the latest at 4:45. You can watch it live on my Facebook page. pic.twitter.com/D75zji8RBx

— Jared Polis (@GovofCO) March 5, 2020

Colorado joins Nevada, New Jersey, Tennessee, Maryland and Texas in identifying new cases of the virus today. The CDC confirmed two cases in Texas as positive Thursday evening. 

The patient in Colorado reportedly caught the disease while outside of the state and is being quarantined in the Denver metro area while public health officials identify close contacts to whom they may have spread the disease. 

There are 148 confirmed total cases across the U.S., including those repatriated from cruise ships or China, according to data reported by the CDC.