China Will Work With WHO Experts on Coronavirus

China has agreed to allow international experts, including Americans to enter the country and work with scientists battling the fast-spreading coronavirus that has killed more than 100 people, but it is not clear whether officials from the Centers for Disease Control will be included.

The World Health Organization on Tuesday announced it will organize an international group as soon as possible to work with China and to guide global response efforts, reports Axios.

Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar said during a press conference the United States will be "delighted" to participate, reports Fox News.  

However, he also said the Chinese have continued to refuse offers from the United States to send in CDC officials. U.S. officials have continued to push for more transparency as the outbreak spreads, said Azar, as "this is a major public health issue, and we need the best public health people in the world right now [to respond]."

WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesu said in a statement that stopping the virus' spread is the WHO's "highest priority."

"We appreciate the seriousness with which China is taking this outbreak, especially the commitment from top leadership, and the transparency they have demonstrated, including sharing data and genetic sequence of the virus," he said. 

China's response has been better with the coronavirus outbreak than it was during the 2002-2003 Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) epidemic, Azar said. 

China says it has learned from "past mistakes," including warning lower-level officials from covering up the disease's spread.

Azar noted, China has quickly allowed the virus' genetic sequence to be available to scientists, which has allowed the CDC to create a diagnostic test in just a week's time.

In Tuesday's press conference, with Azar, CDC Director Robert Redfield, National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Disease (NCIRD) Director Nancy Messonnier, and National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) Director Anthony Fauci, officials called the outbreak a "potentially very serious public health threat" for the United States. 

So far, there have been five cases of the virus confirmed in the United States.

The CDC on Tuesday put its China travel recommendations at a level 3, its highest alert. 

• Poll: Americans Fear Coronavirus Outbreak in US
• Wuhan Mayor: 5 Million Fled City Before Lockdown