The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) just a few hours ago removed the number of people in the U.S. who have been tested for the novel coronavirus COVID-19 from its website, just hours before announcing the death toll has increased. The agency also canceled a press conference without offering any reason.
“CDC spokesperson Ben Haynes told reporters on the scheduled call that [the press conference] had been pushed back and did not provide an explanation as to why or when it would be rescheduled,” Politico reports.
Meanwhile, the Washington Post reports four more people, all in the state of Washington, have died, bringing the death toll to six people nationwide.
Here is a screenshot of the current CDC website that details data on coronavirus, without the number of people tested listed:
And here is an archived version, from just hours ago:
The CDC has come under scrutiny recently, with doctors and experts criticizing the agency for refusing to share with physicians across the county the details of treatment for all but one of the coronavirus patients who have recovered.
This article was updated at 3:08 PM ET to reflect the latest death toll number.