Utah Woman Tests Negative For Coronavirus; Will Soon Return To US
Feb 29, 2020, 11:59 AM | Updated: Jun 22, 2022, 3:34 pm
Jerri Jorgensen smiles for a picture aboard a Diamond Princess cruise ship. (Courtesy Jerri and Mark Jorgensen)
(Courtesy Jerri and Mark Jorgensen)
SALT LAKE CITY — A Utah woman being treated for coronavirus in Japan has tested negative for the second time, and may soon be discharged from the hospital and cleared to return home to the United States.
St. George residents Jerri and Mark Jorgensen were quarantined on a Diamond Princess cruise ship in Japan with over 3,000 people after dozens tested positive for the coronavirus. She tested positive and was taken to a Japanese hospital for treatment.
Dr. Todd Vento, associate medical director of Intermountain Healthcare teleservices, said Jerri Jorgensen was required to have two-consecutive negative tests before she could be released and transported back to Utah.
Jorgensen had her first negative test within the last few days. She said she expected to be released Monday, and planned to fly home sometime next week.
UPDATE: Jerri Jorgensen tells me she is being discharged from a Japanese the hospital on Monday after testing negative for #coronavirus and is flying home sometime next week @KSL5TV pic.twitter.com/Hzymar37qj
— Ashley Moser (@AshleyMoser) February 29, 2020
Several days later, her husband, Mark Jorgensen, took an emergency flight to the Travis Air Force Base in Fairfield, California. He later tested positive for the virus, and was quarantined in Sacramento.
He has since been transferred to Intermountain Medical Center in Murray, Utah for continued treatment.
Posted by Jerri Larson Jorgensen on Wednesday, February 26, 2020
Jerri Jorgensen said she will be talking to the U.S. Embassy in Japan Saturday to make arrangements for her return home. She said officials at the embassy believe she will be discharged from the hospital Monday and will be on a flight home either Wednesday or Thursday.
Posted by Jerri Larson Jorgensen on Saturday, February 29, 2020
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