Emergency Planning and Preparedness

MERS-CoV (Novel Coronavirus)

Last reviewed	February 11, 2016
Last updated	February 11, 2016

Human cases infected with the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus (MERS-CoV) present with a variety of symptoms that range from mild illness to more severe disease. Most patients present with severe acute respiratory infection requiring hospitalization; however, some confirmed cases have presented with mild to moderate symptoms.

There is no vaccine currently available and no specific treatment for this virus.

The public health risk posed to the people of Ontario by this virus is considered low. This assessment has been made through consideration of the information available at this time, namely:

• All cases have been linked to countries in the Middle East.
• Although there is evidence of human-to-human transmission among close contacts, there is no evidence of sustained spread in community settings.
• Most of the reported cases of human-to-human transmission have occurred in health care settings in the Middle East – and in particular, in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

As it is likely that people who have contracted this virus will continue to travel from the Middle East to other countries, health care workers in Ontario should consider the possibility of MERS-CoV infection in persons with acute respiratory infection that meet the case definitions outlined in the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care's Guidance for Health Workers and Health Sector Employers on MERS-CoV.

The ministry's guidance also provides health care workers and health sector employers with information on laboratory testing and appropriate occupational health & safety and infection prevention & control measures.

The ministry has also developed the Emerging Infectious Respiratory Disease Roadmap. This document outlines the health system's initial response actions to a confirmed human case of a novel infectious respiratory disease, such as MERS-CoV. Health care workers and health sector employers can use the Roadmap as a tool to prepare for their response role in the event that a case of MERS-CoV is detected in their organization.

Ministry Updates

• Chief Medical Officer of Health Memo: MERS-CoV – Revisions to Ontario's Case Definitions – February 11, 2016 – PDF
• Chief Medical Officer of Health Memo: Update on MERS-CoV – September 15, 2015 – PDF
• Chief Medical Officer of Health Memo: Revised MERS-CoV case definition – June 12, 2015 – PDF
• Chief Medical Officer of Health Memo: MERS-CoV outbreak in the Republic of Korea – June 4, 2015 – PDF
• Chief Medical Officer of Health Memo: Changes to the list of countries affected by MERS-CoV on the ministry's website – March 5, 2015 - PDF
• Chief Medical Officer of Health Memo: Recent global increase in MERS-CoV cases – May 12, 2014 - PDF

Further information about MERS-CoV

• World Health Organization's Disease Outbreak News
• Public Health Agency of Canada's Website on MERS-CoV
• United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Website on MERS-CoV
• Ministry of Labour's page on Health and Community Care
• Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care's Guidance for Health Workers and Health Sector Employers
• Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care's Frequently Asked Questions page on MERS-CoV

To view Portable Document Format PDF files, you will need to have Adobe Acrobat® Reader installed on your computer. You can download this free software from the Adobe website.