On March 13, 2020, an unverified report from the South China Morning Post suggested that the first case could be traced back to November 17, 2019, in a 55-year-old person from Hubei province. On February 26, 2020, the WHO reported that, as new cases appeared to be decreasing in China but suddenly increasing in Italy, Iran, and South Korea, the number of new cases outside of China exceeded the number of new cases in China for the first time.
Tarehe 13 March 2020, ripoti isiyoweza kuthibitishwa kutoka Gazeti la Uchina Kusini ya Asubuhi ilisema kuwa kuna kisa kilichofuatiliwa hadi 17 Novemba 2019, katika mtu mwenye umri wa 55 kutoka mkoa wa Hubei, huenda ikawa kisa cha kwanza.Tarehe 26 Februari 2020, Shirika la Afya Duniani iliripoti kuwa, jinsi visa vipya vinavyosemekana zilizidi kupungua Uchina lakini zikazidi Italia, Irani, na Korea Kusini, idadi ya visa vipya nje ya Uchina ilizidi nambari ya visa vipya katika Uchina kwa mara ya kwanza.