Butterfield at ZMC Health Dept. on Coronavirus

ZANESVILLE, Ohio — The Medical Director of the Zanesville-Muskingum Co. Health Department is weighing in on coronavirus.

Doctor Jack Butterfield says there’s almost as much misinformation as fact floating around right now, and the hype and sensationalism are not healthy.

“Coronavirus is on everybody’s mind nowadays and part of that is because our news media is saturating airwaves and every other social media with information on coronavirus, much of which is accurate and much of which is not accurate. So, it can create a sense of hysteria and false reports, engendering panic and fear. The important thing I want to emphasize right now is, right now, in our country, we do not have community spread. In Ohio we have no cases,” Butterfield says.

Butterfield says anyone in the Zanesville area who has not been to Wuhan, China or any other coronavirus hotspot is at a very low risk of contracting the virus.

“The important thing is right now, what you need to do is the usual things that you would do for influenza because influenza today in our community is a much larger threat,” Butterfield says.

Doctor Butterfield says as coronavirus cases trickle into the local community, he recommends taking steps similar to avoid contracting the flu.