Health News Roundup: Hungary confirms third case of corona in man returned from Milan; Bad news keeps spirits low and more

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

Hungary confirms third coronavirus case in man who returned from Milan

Hungary has confirmed a third case of the coronavirus, after a Hungarian man who had returned from Milan to the eastern city of Debrecen on Feb. 29 tested positive, the government said on its official website on Thursday. The man developed a fever after his return, and the government said it would provide more information about his condition on Friday.

Lockdown: Bad news keeps spirits low in Italy's red zone

After almost two weeks shut off from the outside world, the mood is as overcast as the weather and the strain is starting to be felt, says Marzio Toniolo, a primary school teacher in quarantine in northern Italy because of the coronavirus outbreak. "I feel a little melancholy because the news coming from neighboring towns is not comforting," says Toniolo, who sends Reuters daily videos from his home in the Lombardy red zone -- one of a cluster of 10 towns in lockdown.

New coronavirus infections may drop to zero by end-March in Wuhan: Chinese government expert

Wuhan, the epicenter of China's coronavirus epidemic, will likely see new infections drop to zero by the end of this month, an expert with the country's top panel on battling the illness said on Thursday, even as the city reported a quicker rise in new confirmed cases. Mainland China had 139 new confirmed cases as of Wednesday, the National Health Commission (NHC) said, bringing the total accumulated number of cases to 80,409. Authorities reported 119 new cases the previous day and 125 the day before that.

U.S. Congress approves, sends to Trump $8.3 billion to fight coronavirus

The U.S. Senate on Thursday passed and sent to President Donald Trump an $8.3 billion funding bill to help state and local governments combat the spreading coronavirus, as public health experts outlined efforts to rapidly accelerate testing for the disease. By a vote of 96-1, the Senate approved legislation that was overwhelmingly passed on Wednesday by the House of Representatives.

Palestinians declare state of emergency over coronavirus: prime minister

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas declared a 30-day state of emergency on Thursday after coronavirus cases were reported in the West Bank town of Bethlehem. The decree was announced by Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammed Shtayyeh hours after officials closed Bethlehem's Church of the Nativity, the traditional birthplaces of Jesus, and banned foreign tourists from West Bank hotels.

New York state coronavirus cases double, Senate passes $8.3 billion spending bill

The number of people who have the novel coronavirus in New York state doubled to 22 on Thursday following an increase in testing, as Tennessee and the city of San Francisco reported cases of the fast-spreading illness for the first time. New York Governor Andrew Cuomo told a news conference testing expanded after the federal government approved its use of additional laboratories, boosting capacity. He said more testing would inevitably identify more cases.

Moscow imposes 'high alert regime' to stem coronavirus outbreak

Moscow authorities announced a "high alert regime" and imposed extra measures on Thursday to prevent a spread of the coronavirus in the Russian capital. A document posted on the Moscow mayor's website said that Russians who return from China, South Korea, Iran, France, Germany, Italy and Spain and other states who display possible "unfavorable" signs of coronavirus should self-isolate themselves at home for 14 days.

Special Report: Before coronavirus, China bungled swine epidemic with secrecy

When the deadly virus was first discovered in China, authorities told the people in the know to keep quiet or else. Fearing reprisal from Beijing, local officials failed to order tests to confirm outbreaks and didn't properly warn the public as the pathogen spread death around the country. All this happened long before China's coronavirus outbreak, which has claimed more than 3,000 lives worldwide in less than three months. For the past 19 months, secrecy has hobbled the nation's response to African swine fever, an epidemic that has killed millions of pigs. A Reuters examination has found that swine fever's swift spread was made possible by China's systemic under-reporting of outbreaks. And even today, bureaucratic secrecy and perverse policy incentives continue undermining Chinese efforts to defeat one of the worst livestock epidemics in modern history.

COVID-19 epidemic can be pushed back with concerted approach: WHO

The epidemic of COVID-19 coronavirus infection spreading around the world can be contained and controlled, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Thursday, but only with a concerted response by all governments. WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus voiced concerns at the growing number of countries with cases, especially those with weaker health systems and called on governments to harness all ministries to tackle the virus.

Hands down, men worse at bathroom hygiene that prevents coronavirus

The spread of the new coronavirus is shining the spotlight on a little-discussed gender split: men wash their hands after using the bathroom less than women, years of research and on-the-ground observations show. Health officials around the world advise that deliberate, regular handwashing is one of the best weapons against the virus which causes a flu-like respiratory illness that can kill and has spread to around 80 countries.