The White House is considering appointing a coronavirus czar to coordinate the U.S. response to the disease, Politico reported Wednesday, citing two officials familiar with the matter.
White House spokesman Judd Deere quickly took to Twitter to declare the report false.
President Donald Trump "is pleased with the leadership of @SecAzar to protect the public health," Deere wrote, referring to Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar, who is leading a coronavirus task force.
Politico said officials are still debating whether such a role is necessary. Trump is due to hold a news conference on the government's coronavirus response at 6 p.m. ET.
Global markets have slumped for the past five days over the prolonged disruption to supply chains from the disease, which has infected about 80,000 people and killed nearly 3,000.
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