DUESSELDORF, GERMANY (REUTERS) - Four western German states reported a total of 20 new cases of the coronavirus on Thursday (Feb 27), a day after the federal health minister said the country is at the start of an epidemic.

In North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany's most populous state, the health ministry said 14 more people tested positive for the coronavirus on Thursday in the Heinsberg area, where a couple were the first confirmed cases in the state.