Wes Thrift, with Roper St. Francis Healthcare, is reflected in a car window wearing a protective mask as he talks to a possible coronavirus patient at the hospital's North Charleston office Monday, March 16, 2020, in North Charleston, S.C. (AP Photo/Mic Smith) The new coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak has created a third spike in influenza-like illness (ILI) activity across the United States, as researchers working with AccuWeather predicted, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)."The COVID-19 outbreak unfolding in the United States may affect healthcare-seeking behavior, which, in turn, would impact [CDC flu] data," the CDC noted in its weekly update.COVID-19 has now spread to more than 160 countries or regions with more than 240,000 confirmed cases and at least 10,000 deaths. In the U.S., there have been more than 14,500 confirmed cases - up from 3,770 just last week - and at least 175 deaths.Visits to health care providers for ILI increased fo
