Epidemiological data from the COVID-19 outbreak, real-time case information

Xu, Bo; Gutierrez, Bernardo; Mekaru, Sumiko; Sewalk, Kara; Goodwin, Lauren; Loskill, Alyssa; Cohn, Emily L.; Hswen, Yulin; Hill, Sarah C.; Cobo, Maria M.; Zarebski, Alexander E.; Li, Sabrina; Wu, Chieh-Hsi; Hulland, Erin; Morgan, Julia D.; Wang, Lin; O’Brien, Katelynn; Scarpino, Samuel V.; Brownstein, John S.; Pybus, Oliver G.; Pigott, David M.; Kraemer, Moritz U. G.

Cases of a novel coronavirus were first reported in Wuhan, Hubei province, China, in December 2019 and have since spread across the world. Epidemiological studies have indicated human-to-human transmission in China and elsewhere. To aid the analysis and tracking of the COVID-19 epidemic we collected and curated individual-level data from national, provincial, and municipal health reports, as well as additional information from online reports. All data are geo-coded and, where available, include symptoms, key dates (date of onset, admission, and confirmation), and travel history. The generation of detailed, real-time, and robust data for emerging disease outbreaks is important and can help to generate robust evidence that will support and inform public health decision making.