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20-153 Novel Coronavirus Resources and Clinical Guidance

Date: 02/07/20

This information applies to Physicians, Participating Physician Groups (PPGs), Hospitals, and Ancillary providers.

For Medi-Cal, this information applies to Kern, Los Angeles, Riverside, Sacramento, San Bernardino, San Diego, San Joaquin, Stanislaus, and Tulare counties.

Includes guidelines for testing and reporting

Health Net* encourages providers to be aware of guidelines for testing, reporting and treating cases of 2019 novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV). Providers should monitor resources described below as more information becomes available.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommendations for providers

  • Limited information is available to characterize the spectrum of clinical illness associated with 2019-nCoV. No vaccine or specific treatment for 2019-nCoV infection is available; care is supportive.
  • The CDC clinical criteria for a 2019-nCoV patient under investigation (PUI) have been developed based on what is known about MERS-CoV and SARS-CoV and are subject to change as additional information becomes available.
  • Health care providers should obtain a detailed travel history for patients being evaluated with fever and acute respiratory illness.
  • Health care providers should immediately notify both infection control personnel at their health care facility and their local or state health department in the event of a PUI for 2019-nCoV.
  • Additional guidance for collection, handling and testing of clinical specimens is available at www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-nCoV/.

The above bullet points were adapted from emergency.cdc.gov/han/han00426.asp.

Clinical criteria for evaluating a PUI

Patients should be evaluated on a case-by-case basis. Interim CDC guidance can be found at cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-nCoV/clinical-criteria.html.

Note, per the CDC guidance, fever may not be present in some patients, such as those who are very young, elderly, immunosuppressed, or taking certain fever-lowering medications.

Action you should take when affecting the Los Angeles County area

Providers should immediately report any patients that meet the criteria for PUIs for 2019-nCoV to LAC DPH Acute Communicable Disease Control (ACDC).

  • ACDC approval is required before specimens can be submitted for 2019-nCoV testing.
  • The Los Angeles County Health Alert Network (LAHAN) has provided updated guidance on 2019-nCoV testing and evaluation of PUI at publichealth.lacounty.gov/lahan. Providers can subscribe to LAHAN to get more information as it becomes available.

Reporting

Los Angeles County DPH Acute Communicable Disease Control:

  • Weekdays 8:30 a.m.–5 p.m.: call (213) 240-7941.
  • After-hours: call (213) 974-1234 and ask for the physician on call.

Long Beach Health and Human Services:

  • Weekdays 8 a.m.–5 p.m.: call (562) 570-4302.
  • After hours: call the duty officer at (562) 500-5537.

Pasadena Public Health Department:

  • Weekdays 8 a.m.–5 p.m. (closed every other Friday): call (626) 744-6089.
  • After hours: call (626) 744-6043.

More resources

CDC coronavirus main website:

  • www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html

CA DPH coronavirus webpage for providers:

  • www.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/CID/DCDC/Pages/Immunization/nCOV2019.aspx

LAC DPH coronavirus website:

  • www.ph.lacounty.gov/media/Coronavirus/

LAC DPH coronavirus webpage for providers:

  • http://publichealth.lacounty.gov/acd/nCorona2019.htm

The above information related to the Los Angeles County area was adapted from information found at http://publichealth.lacounty.gov/lahan/.

Additional information

If you have questions regarding the information contained in this update, contact the Health Net Provider Services Center by email at provider_services@healthnet.com within 60 days, by telephone or through the Health Net provider website as listed in the right-hand column on page 1.



Last Updated: 02/25/2020